Forget Me Not
by WingBladeWeaver1357
Summary: The adventure continues for Hikari as she search for the people important to her. A trip to Castle Oblivion made her realize for what mattered the most was remembered the least. She vowed to always remember, but things get a lot trickier when a Nobody is involved. One day, she met a boy similar to the one she met 10 years ago. Who is this mysterious boy? COM/DAYS. AU. OC. Gen.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I just got too excited and decided to post the new story right away haha

 **To everyone who just started reading this story, please read** _New Beginnings_ **and** _Little Adventures_ **, the comic version of the prequel of New Beginning at my DA account. There will be a lot of elements taken out from Little Adventures to be sure to check it out :D**

Reply to the reviews from the last chapter of New Beginnings:

Lulu9814: Hehe thank you! I hope you like this story too!

AllSpark Princess: Thank you so much, I hope you like this story too ^^

Guest: haha and no to finals! (I hate finals because I always stay up late to study lol and college yay :p) aww thank you! I just love writing Yuffie's character. Lol he's such a jerk in KH1, but I'm happy that he isn't in COM and in any of the other game. And yay! Genie! And thank you so much! I hope you like this sequel as well ^^

DisneyFreak-Lover: thank you! I hope you like the sequel ^^

Full summary:  
The adventure continues for Hikari as she search for the people important to her. A trip to Castle Oblivion made her realize for what mattered the most was remembered the least. She vowed to always remember, but things get a lot trickier when a Nobody is involved. One day, she met a boy similar to the one she met 10 years ago. Who is this mysterious boy? COM/DAYS. AU. OC. Gen. Sequel

Kingdom Hearts (C) Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Noli oblivisci: Don't forget (in latin)

* * *

Chapter 1  
Noli oblivisci

* * *

 _23 days._

 _It's been 23 days since you disappeared, Sora._

 _I miss you._

* * *

"Done already?"

Hikari turned around, giving a nod at the black-haired ninja. "Yeah." she walked closer to the older girl, stuffing her hands inside her pants' pockets.

Yuffie crossed her arms, humming. "That's weird... Your inner monologue usually last more than an hour or two." she pointed out as she rubbed her chin, giving a thinking pose.

The brunette's eye twitched. "You've been counting?" she gave her a look.

"Well, yeah." Yuffie answered casually. "You stare at the castle every morning and night for more than an hour, sometimes three. So I decided to time you."

Hikari blinked. "Really? I never knew I was staring at the castle for that long." she said, glancing back to look at the castle.

Ever since day one, the brunette had always spared some time to gaze at the castle. She would stare at it for an hour or two before going back to help out. Everyone from the committee didn't need to ask her to know what she was doing, but sometimes the residents of the world would come up to her and ask what's wrong. In reply, she would just say that she's admiring how big the castle is and then she would leave. During the first week, a lot of people would come up to her. But since the second passed, everyone decided to leave her alone since it was a daily sight for them to see her staring off at the castle.

Yuffie shrugged. "Time flies." she said. She took a step closer to the younger girl and raised her hand up. She slapped the younger girl's back, almost making her lose her balance. "C'mon! It's our turn to do a round!" she grinned.

Hikari glared at her playfully for slapping her back. "Right. Let's go kick some Heartless butt!" she pumped her fist up, summoning her rod into hand.

The black-haired girl laughed. "That's the spirit!" she winked at the brunette before turning around.

Hikari followed after Yuffie, giving a short 'hello' to greet the people she passed. After Sora defeated Ansem, a part of Hollow Bastion returned. Before, it was just a floating castle with nothing around it. Now, there's a town with residents, even though it's not in the best condition for people to live in at the moment. The committee worked hard to rebuild the town to make it more suitable for people to live in. They took turns from doing rounds around town and helping people rebuild homes and stores. Sometimes, they even pulled an all-nighter just to reassure some kids that the Heartless won't bother them when they're asleep.

Between her role in the committee and staring at the castle to 'talk' to Sora, she still managed time to go look for Sora, Donald and Goofy. Since they can't use the gummi ship anymore without opening the world's keyhole, the only source of travel is the Star Shard. Leon explained to her that if they use the gummi ship, they would have to open the world's keyhole to get inside the world and they will need a keyblade wielder to lock the world before leaving, which they don't have at the moment.

The brunette went over to the worlds she had visited, asking the people she knew if they have seen her brother or not. The answer would always be the same, but they did helped her look around. After a long and tiring day, she would help Aerith out in researching through the books from the library. She tried her best to read the thick and picture-less books to find out more about how to get her brother back, but it was a little too boring for her.

"Hikari! Duck!" Yuffie shouted.

The brunette quickly ducked down.

"What are you doing?" She heard her friend ask as she took a few steps closer.

Hikari blinked, glancing up to look at Yuffie. "You said 'duck!' so I ducked." she answered as she stood up, staring at the black-haired girl confusedly. "Wasn't there a Heartless behind me?" she asked.

Yuffie suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh hahaha! Seriously?!" she doubled over, clutching her sides as she continues to laugh loudly. Hikari crossed her arms, puffing her cheeks out as she glared at the older girl. A minute passed and she finally stopped laughing, raising her hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes. "There's no Heartless! When I said 'duck', I really mean a duck! Look!" she pointed her finger to the duck behind Hikari.

The brunette followed Yuffie's finger and her blue eyes widened slightly. "Wow... It really is a duck..." she trailed off, sure she had seen the triplets, Huey, Dewey and Louie, back in Traverse Town, but after being in a town where there's only humans for a few weeks, seeing a walking duck is a rare sight. "I never seen him before..." she said, turning to look at Yuffie.

"Maybe he just arrived today or something? Or maybe we've been too busy to notice." Yuffie placed her hand on her hip, staring at the duck.

"Think so too." Hikari grinned sheepishly. Her blue eyes stared at the duck before her eyes wondered over to the person who approached the duck. She blinked a few times before rubbing her eyes, hoping that what she was seeing was an illusion. But when the image stayed, her jaw dropped down widely. "Isn't that Cloud?! He's talking more than ten words!" she gasped out dramatically.

"You're right!" Yuffie gawked.

Over the weeks she had been working with the blond man, he rarely interacts with the residents, plus he rarely talks to the rest of the committee. Sometimes Yuffie and Hikari would make a joke by counting the words he said for a day. They really did counted and ended up with a slap to the back of their head by the blond himself.

As if Cloud knew, he turned his head to the direction of the two girls. "I can hear you both loud and clear." he said, furrowing his eyebrows at them. "If my hands aren't full I would hit you two again." he continued as the two girls walked closer.

"One, two..." Hikari counted, raising her finger in each word she counted. She whistled in amazement, at the amount. She looked up to Cloud and grinned. "More than twenty! It's a new record!" she laughed. "Aw! Hey!" she shouted in complain when she felt a slap to the back of her head.

"I warned you." Cloud said, crossing his arms over his chest. He picked up the box from the ground and walked towards the closed shop, placing the box with the others. He stood back up and turned around to face the two girls. "Isn't it your turn to patrol?" he asked.

Hikari pouted. "It is. We were on our way, but we found you. We were only having some fun... Besides, there's no one to bother except you, Leon and Cid." she crossed her hands behind her head.

"Go bother Aerith or Merlin then." the blond man said.

"I don't want to bother Aerith and Merlin." Hikari answered. "She might stop making Barley tea if we pulled pranks on her everyday. And Merlin's my teacher, he might zap me with Thunder or something!" she added.

Yuffie laughed. "She's right."

Cloud shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Thank you for yer help, lass!" the three turned to look at the duck who came out from the shop. He walked towards them with a cane, a hand behind his back. As he reached Cloud, he tucked his top hat up, showing his gratitude. Cloud nodded his head. The duck then turned his head to Yuffie and Hikari. "Scrooge Mcduck, traveler and businessman. My card." he handed Yuffie his business card.

Yuffie took the card and nodded her head.

"Oh?" Scrooge turned to look at Hikari, he fixed his glasses and he smiled. He walked closer to the brunette and she kneeled down to the duck's eye level. "Why if it isn't little Hikari! You've grown a lot since I last saw ye, lassie!" he cheerfully said.

The brunette blinked and laughed. "Sorry... I think you've mistaken me for another 'Hikari'." she smiled. "We never met before today."

Yuffie nudged the younger girl. "But he knows your name." she whispered. "You never introduced yourself." she continued, stating the fact.

Hikari's eyes widened in realization. "I...don't know..." She turned her head from Yuffie to Scrooge, her face scrunched up in confusion.

"Think harder, maybe you've met him before." Cloud said, staring at the girl.

Hikari closed her eyes as she began to try and remember if she met Scrooge in the past or not. She doesn't remember meeting anyone by the name of Scrooge when she was little. A minute passed and the brunette let out a loud sigh, shaking her head 'no'. Scrooge rubbed his chin and an idea crossed his mind. He reached something inside his pocket and pulled something out, showing it to the three.

"Perhaps these might jog yer memory!" Scrooge said as he showed Hikari the tickets. Hikari took one and both Cloud and Yuffie took one too, examining the ticket. "Lifetime passes to Disney Town. I gave these out because a young lass helped me."

"Lifetime passes?! Awesome! Can I have this?" Yuffie asked, holding out the ticket with her eyes shining.

Cloud took the ticket from Yuffie's hand and she shined in respond. The blond kneeled down to gave the two tickets back to Scrooge. He turned to look at the brunette who stared at the ticket with a serious gaze as she tries hard to remember.

"Disney Town? Disney Palace's town, right?" Hikari asked as she stared at the words on the ticket.

Scrooge nodded his head. "Yer right 'bout that! So do ye remember now?" he asked.

Hikari sighed as she gave the ticket back. "Sorry... I don't remember anything... Everything's a blur." she apologized.

Scrooge pocketed the tickets, shaking his head. "It's alright. Ye were very young, so I don't really expect ye to remember." he said. He held his can and sighed in content as he recalled the memories. "I remembered that the lass dropped ye off to me! Telling me to babysit ye while he handled a few things." he laughed at the old memories.

Hikari's eyes widened. "He? Do you remember his name?"

"Sorry, lassie... He never told me and ye didn't either." Scrooge said.

"Oh... That's alright." Hikari sighed, giving a smile.

"Thanks for the info." Cloud thanked the duck before he stood up. "We should get going." he said to the two girls.

"Yeah, we need to patrol around." Yuffie said, nodding her head in agreement.

Hikari stood up and looked down. "Thank you so much, Mr. Scrooge. I'm sorry I forgot you... I'll try to remember harder." She said. "Maybe we can talk later." she smiled.

Scrooge nodded. "Aye. That's a splendid idea."

The brunette left the duck, jogging to catch up with the blond man and the black-haired girl. She walked in the middle of the two, her face scrunched up in thought. She tried again to remember anything from the past, but nothing came up. She remembered when they found Kairi, but before that, everything seemed to be a blur.

"Don't think too hard or else your face might be stuck like that forever." Yuffie said, placing her hand on Hikari's shoulder, snapping her away from her thoughts. "You have plenty of time to remember. So don't worry about it okay?" she grinned.

Hikari nodded. "But it's weird... I can't seem to remember... Shouldn't I remember if I met a talking duck when I was a kid?" she asked, turning to look at Yuffie.

Cloud shrugged. "He said so himself, you were young." he said as they continued to make their way to around the streets, patrolling. He suddenly stopped, making the two girls stop as well. His blue eyes were averted to look at the brunette, who in return stare back. "But I'm curious... How did you meet him in the first place? I'm sure you don't have the Star Shard back then."

Hikari's eyes widened. "You're right!"

"Wow... Freaky..." Yuffie mumbled, crossing her arms. She raised her hands up. "Okay, enough of this freaky talk. Let's just go around and talk about it later, 'kay? It's kinda freaking me out." she said as she placed her hands on Hikari's shoulders, turning her around and then pushing her to continue walking.

Hikari couldn't agree more.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"We're back!" Yuffie shouted as she slammed open the door to Merlin's house widely, stepping inside the house before Cloud and Hikari.

Aerith smiled. "Welcome back." she greeted from where she sat.

"Argh... So tired!" Hikari mumbled, stretching her arms above her head as she walked inside the house. After their talk with Scrooge, they continued on their patrol, not one of them mentioning about her past. They got their hands full to even talk. Heartless kept on popping up everywhere, if they killed one, then one would replace its place. But by the end of the day, they finished the wave of Heartless and returned back to the committee's home safely. She let out a deep sigh as she sat on the empty chair. "Thanks Aerith..." she thanked when the woman gave her a glass of barley tea.

The woman nodded her head with a smile. "This is our first month here... So it's going to be the hardest." she said.

Cid snorted. "You got that right."

"We have a long way to go, but things are looking better." Leon said, crossing his arms.

Hikari took a sip from her tea, staring at the table in front of her. There were books stacked up to mountains and papers everywhere. She cringed at the sight of it and felt sorry for Aerith that she has to look through them everyday. She stared at the woman as she seemed to be searching for something. "What's wrong Aerith? Did you lost a paper or something?" she asked, holding the glass as she didn't want to place it on the table.

Aerith kept on searching. "I seemed to misplace a few books..." she said.

"That's unusual of you, Aerith." Yuffie said as she approached the older woman. "You usually put things in easy places to look for." she said and she helped pick the books up.

"What book are you looking for?" Leon asked, helping out as well.

"Mava volume 4 and Theon volume 6." Aerith answered.

Everyone started to search for the two books. There were mountains of books stacked on the table and on the floor, so it took them quite some time to go through all of the books. The committee told the residents that the castle are is restricted because it was too dangerous for them, the rule also goes with the committee too. The members can't go to the castle alone. They have to bring someone else from the committee. The castle is still not a safe place to wonder around, the library included. So they decided to take some of the books from the library to Merlin's house.

Hikari picked up a green book. "Ah! I found-! Never mind..." she quickly said after reading the Roman numbers again. She misreads the Roman number of six to four. She placed the book down and glanced over to the woman. "Maybe you forgot them in the library?" she said.

"Maybe..." Aerith trailed off.

Hikari clapped her hands, dusting the dust off her hands. "I'll go look for it."

"I'll go too." Leon said as he followed the brunette to the door.

Aerith nodded. "Alright, be careful."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Theon, Theon, Theon..." Hikari's fingers grazed through the lines of books she passed, trying to look the certain book. The library was huge and it was going to take them forever to look for the two books. They decided to split up and search for the book individually, and if they ran into some trouble, they could just yell for help, but she doubts that Leon would actually yell for help. "Hey Leon! Did you find it yet?" she shouted.

"Not yet." a reply was heard.

The brunette sighed before continuing to look for the book. "This is gonna take forever!" she groaned, her shoulders sagged. She took a deep breath and let it out a second later before glanced around. Her eyes wondered to the books placed on the table at the end of the case. She walked towards the table and picked up a few books, putting them aside to revile the book pilled underneath it. Her eyes widened when she read over the title. "Ah! Theon 6! Finally!" She yelled out happily, picking up the think book.

"You found it?" She heard Leon.

"Yeah!" Hikari shouted, turning her head to the direction where she heard him.

"Great. Now help me find Mava."

"Okay!" Hikari held the book with both her hands as she started to help Leon look for the second book they need to find. Her footsteps echoed in the quiet library. She stopped walking when she noticed something was amiss. She furrowed her eyebrows and turned around. "Whoa!" she exclaimed in surprise when she saw someone standing a few feet away from her.

Hikari dropped the book out of surprise. "Geez! Don't scare me like that!" she sighed, placing a hand on her chest, feeling the fast beating of her heart. Her eyes observed the man. He wore a black hooded leather coat, along with black boots, black pants and black gloves, basically everything the man wore is black. She took a few deep breaths to calm her heart. "Sorry, but you can't be in here... It's not safe." she said.

She tilted her head when the man didn't reply. "Well I'm going to help Leon look for a book, after that we'll go out together. How's that?" she smiled, offering to help the man.

"You look a lot like him." A deep baritone voice said, surprising Hikari. It was no doubt that the man before her just spoke.

Hikari took a step forward. "What are you talking about?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows down, staring at the man suspiciously. "Look a lot like him... Do you mean Sora? Do you know where he is?! Tell me!" she demanded.

The brunette quickly summoned her rod into hand when the man lunged forward. She placed her rod in front of her, shielding herself from the man's incoming attacks. She closed her eyes tightly and waited for the attack to come, but it didn't. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up, finding the man was no longer in front of her. The young girl glanced around, trying to find the man, but it was useless. The man had disappeared.

"Who was that?" Hikari mumbled as looked down. She tilted her head when something was placed on the floor right in front of her. A blue crown-shaped card. She bends down and picked the blue card up, turning it over. A picture of a castle was seen. It didn't look like the Beast's Castle or Hollow Bastion. Her eyes kept on staring at the card, turning it over and over again. "What's this? A trading card?" she asked aloud.

"Castle Oblivion." the baritone voice appeared, making the girl jump. She quickly turned around, standing in a fighting stance as she looked for the man. The man reappeared a few feet behind her, making her turn around. "There you will meet the people you have known in the past, and you will meet the people you miss." he continued.

Hikari looked up, staring at the man with wide eyes.

"You have no memory of the castle, so I will lend you mine to lead you there."

Hikari glanced down to look at the card. "Who are you really? Why should I trust you?" she lifted her chin up, staring at the man.

"I am one of the people that you have met."

"Huh? What? Wait!" Hikari reached her hand out as she ran forward, trying to stop the man from leaving. He disappeared in a dark portal, leaving the girl alone in the library. She stared at the spot where the man had disappeared. There were so many questions that she wanted to ask the man. She glanced down to look at the card in her hand. "Castle Oblivion..." she mumbled.

"Hikari!" said brunette turned around to find Leon running towards her, a green book in hand. "I heard yelling. Did something happen?" he asked.

Hikari glanced down to the card and gave it to Leon. "Someone gave me that card..." she said.

"Someone?" Leon echoed. "No one is allowed to enter the castle..." he said as he inspected the card.

Hikari nodded.

"Let's head back to Merlin's house. We'll talk there."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So this man suddenly appeared out of nowhere and gave you a card and then tells you that he knows you _and_ to go to this castle?" Cid asked as he crossed his arms.

Hikari nodded. "That sums it up. Yeah."

Cid sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't know, kid... Seems like a scam to me." he said.

Yuffie hummed as she stared at the card intensely. "This card seems legit, gramps." she said as she handed the card back to Hikari.

"Perhaps that man is trying to help you out?" Merlin suggested, taking a sip from his tea. "He did said that he will lead you to the people you care about." he placed the teacup down on the saucer, folding his hands on the table.

"It's from a guy who wears all black and he didn't even show his face. Don't you think it's suspicious?" Leon asked as he glanced over from Merlin to Hikari.

The brunette held the card between her thumb and finger. "Merlin's right... Can't hurt to try, right? Who knows... I might find Sora there." she grinned, glancing around the room to look at the committee's members.

"Typical of you to trust a shady man." Cloud said from where he stood.

Yuffie placed her hands on her hips. "And like you didn't!" she smirked.

"Ooohhh! Burn!" Hikari sniggered as she high-fived with the black-haired girl.

Cloud shook his head, rolling his eyes.

Aerith giggled. "If you're going to this castle, please be careful. We won't be able to accompany you, so please be aware of your surroundings." she advised, smiling at the brunette who stood up from her seat.

Hikari nodded her head. "I understand. I'll come back soon to help out again. So leave some work for me, 'kay?" she grinned.

"Don't worry, there will be plenty." Leon answered.

" _Gee_ , thanks." Hikari said sarcastically at the man, rolling her eyes.

The brunette said her goodbyes to the committee before going out from Merlin's house. She took out the card from her pocket before taking the Star Shard out from her pouch. She stared at the picture printed on the card with a frown. She took a deep breath and pointed the Star Shard to the darkening sky.

"Alright... Take me to Castle Oblivion!"

The Star Shard glowed brightly, taking the brunette up to the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: AHHHH have you guys seen the new Final Trailer of KH 2.8?! It's so beautiful!

Please read Little Adventures and New Beginnings to understand this story more ^^

Special thanks for everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and folowed this story! I love you guys!

I found out that Sora spent around 25 days in CO! Wow... Haha I guess that kind make sense...

Ian12091995: hehe, I got excited to post the new story

Aknamkanon: Ah! Ciao! Awww thank you so much! I never realized Game of Hearts received so many love haha, I'll try ^^. Your English is very good, don't worry

Tankaide: Thanks!

Guest: More pages are coming for Little Adventures ;) and I planned a lot of things to happen hehe. And thank you so much :D

Lulu9814: I'm glad too! Thank you so much!

Trista Liu: thanks!

Tkd2016: thank you!

Guest (Gamergirl) : Awwww thank you so much!

BlueXRedKnight: thank you so much!

V3NU5. S01AR. 570RM. S74R: hehe thank you so much!

Kingdom Hearts (C) Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 2  
Guide

"Again?" Aerith asked.

Hikari could only sigh as she made a beeline to the table. She pulled out the chair and slumped down, burying her face in her arms.

Aerith frowned before she headed to the small kitchen. She came back out a few minutes later with a tray of barley tea in her hands. She placed the glass of the chilled barley tea in front of the brunette. The young woman watched as the young teenage girl lift her head up from her arms and took the glass, slowly drinking the refreshing beverage down. The older brunette pulled out the chair beside the younger brunette and sat down, patiently waiting for the younger girl to talk.

The braid-haired woman stared at Hikari with a small frown. She remembered it perfectly. It had been almost three weeks, or to be precise 18 days after Hikari left to look for Castle Oblivion. They expected her to come back a week later or so with results. Not two days later, she came back almost to the brick of exhaustion, empty handed. To say the least, the committee were shocked to see the usually energetic brunette, passed out on the floor. Yuffie had went to full panic and assumed her friend had died when Leon lifted Hikari up to place her on the sofa, but Cid calmed her down, saying that she was stupid to assume such a thing.

The door opened and a spiky-haired blond walked in. His eyes immediately landed on the sulking young brunette. "Again?" he said as he placed his giant sword down.

Aerith turned to Cloud, giving him a small frown. The blond shrug his shoulders in return before approaching the two girls, his arms crossed.

Hikari placed the glass down, leaning back against the chair. "I just don't get it..." she began, her eyes staring at the half-full glass. Both Cloud and Aerith stared at her, waiting for her to continue. She threw her head back, staring at the ceiling. "Every time I used the Star Shard to get to Castle Oblivion, it just brings me back to that grassy field again and again!" she yelled out, her fingers in her hair as she tried pulling her hair out in frustration.

Cloud snorted, making the brunette turn to glare at him. "Maybe you're already there... in the castle's garden or something." he said.

"Well I'm getting sick of it... If it is the garden then it's one _amazing_ garden." Hikari said sarcastically. She gave a loud sigh before she laid her forehead on the table. She felt a hand was placed on her shoulder. She didn't need to look to know that it was Aerith. Cloud was too cool to comfort. The brunette lifted her head up, her chin on the table. Her hand took something out from her pocket. She stared at the blue crown-shaped card with a frown. "I didn't even find the guy who gave me this card." she groaned, dropping the card to the table.

Cloud and Aerith glanced at each other. A day after Hikari recovered, she went back to look for Castle Oblivion again, but by the end of the day, she came back to Hollow Bastion, completely exhausted. She then tried going back to the castle and look for the hooded man, but she didn't find him either. After some convincing from the committee, the young girl agreed to divide her time to look for the castle and to rest. Each time after she returned, she would stay at Hollow Bastion for a day or two before continuing to look for Castle Oblivion.

"Perhaps there's something that you're not meant to see in that castle?" Aerith suggested.

"Or maybe it's just your bad luck." Cloud added.

Hikari turned to look at Cloud. "Your sarcasm amazed me." she deadpanned. She straightened her posture and her eyes stared at the piece of card on the table. The image of the castle printed on the card was making her even more curious about this castle. Not only was she curious about the castle, she was curious about the man who gave her that card. He told her that he was someone she knew and the card had something to do with memories. "Bad luck or not... Shouldn't the Star Shard zap me to the castle directly and not the stupid garden?" she continued, picking the card up to look at it.

Aerith placed her hand on the brunette's shoulder. "One thing's for sure, is to never give up. You'll find it one day, right, Cloud?" she turned to face the blond man, giving him a look to say something encouraging.

Cloud sighed, nodding his head in agreement. "As much as I want to say that you should stop looking for the imaginary castle... Aerith is right. You'll find your brother one day." he said.

"Again, Cloud... Your way to cheer me up is amazing." Hikari huffed out. She looked away from the blond man for a few seconds before returning to look at him, this time the frown was replaced by a playful grin. "43 words, Cloud. 43 wor-! AW! HEY!" the girl shouted in pain when she felt a sting to her forehead.

Cloud crossed his arms. "I found it amazing that you can count and sulk at the same time, but can't seem to memorize the book Aerith gave you."

"67 wo-Okay! Okay! Geez!" Hikari stopped counting as she was Cloud raise his hand again to flick her forehead. She raised her hands, covering her forehead to prevent Cloud from even touching it, but he still manage to give the famous 'Cloudy Slap' to the back of her head. It was a term both Yuffie and Hikari used when Cloud slapped them upside their head for being stupid or annoying. "You try memorizing a cook book... It's harder than it looks. Every recipe is just different! One needs 200 grams of flour, the other needs 350 grams!" she puffed out her cheeks, glaring at the blond as she rubbed the back of her head. "I mean, I don't even know why I need to memorize a cook book!" she turned to Aerith.

"No wonder Aerith gave you that book." Cloud scoffed.

"Oh. Can you cook? Last time, when it was your turn to cook, you just got us instant noodles." Hikari retorted, turning back to look at Cloud, giving him a look.

"At least you ate it." The blond shrugged. "The last time you cooked, everyone agreed to go out to eat." he shot back.

The relationship between Cloud and Hikari was a weird one or as Yuffie called it 'the roast relationship'. Sometimes they would get along, sometimes they would act like rivals. When two of the most sarcastic members of the committee are in the same room, one way or another a roast battle would occur. Although they're sarcastic to each other, the teamwork between them is remarkable. It amazed even Cid, that a talkative girl and a quiet and broody blond would get along and make up for what they lacked.

Hikari pause for a moment, before sighing. "...touché."

Aerith giggled. She was glad that they managed to change the topic. It was heartbreaking to see the young girl so sad. It almost feels as if she was losing hope to find her brother again. She knew the young girl's growing hate for her other friend, Riku. Even though she didn't say it to them face to face, the way she talked about her friend proves that she blames him for everything. The young woman tried talking her to at least give Riku another chance, but the girl quickly changed the topic.

"Speaking of dinner, I was just about to start on it. Would you like to help? We'll be having stew tonight." the kind young woman said as she stood up, taking the empty glasses from the table.

Hikari nodded. "Sure, why not?" she grinned.

"...I'll reserve a table." Cloud said as he headed straight for the door.

"Okay, see you later Clou-HEY! I'm offended!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Does it hurt Naminé?"

A pale blonde haired girl sat on a white chair inside a white room. She didn't turn her head to the source of the voice. Her eyes kept staring at her hands folded on top of her lap. A regretful look was seen on her face, but the man who approached her doesn't seem to care. She could hear the footsteps coming closer towards her, but she still didn't turn her head to look.

"Does it hurt to watch your two childhood friends fight all because of you?" The man dressed in a black coat stopped right beside her, staring her down. "You have my sympathies. From the heart." he added, placing a hand on his chest, giving a sympathetic look.

Naminé lifted her chin up, furrowing her eyebrows down, giving an angry look at the fiery red-haired man.

The man leaned back, a smirk on his face. "But don't waste your time. We Nobodies can never hope to be somebodies." he said.

"Very true," a feminine voice replied followed by a giggle. The red-haired man turned to look at the woman who entered the room while Naminé looked away. "You took the words right out of my mouth, Axel." her boots clicked against the floor as she walked closer to the two.

"What are you doing here, Larxene?" Axel asked, facing the blonde woman.

"I should ask you the same too," Larxene snorted at the red-haired man before her blue eyes landed on the pale blonde girl sitting on the chair. She took a few steps closer to the blonde girl and placed her gloved hand on the girl's shoulder. "Awww don't be so glum, Naminé. We can never hope to be somebodies, but at least we can dream. You just keep messing with Sora's memories and it'll all become a reality." she laughed, forcing Naminé to look at her.

Naminé turned her head away from the blond woman.

Larxene straightened her posture, leaving the girl alone for now. "By the way, where's the brat that's supposed to come here?" she asked. At the mention of another child, Naminé folded her hands tighter as Axel stared at the blonde woman. She crossed her arms over her chest, a pout on her lips. "It's been like... almost three weeks since Xemnas told us another brat would come here." she pointed out.

"Maybe the kid just got lost or something. Who knows... It took Sora almost a week to get here, now right?" Axel shrugged.

"In a road that's just goes straight? The kid must be stupid to get lost." Larxene snorted, a hand in front of her mouth. She did her math. Even if the kid started at the same spot Sora did, the kid would've reached Castle Oblivion around a week ago. "Why would Xemnas want us to mess with another kid's head? What's so special about this brat anyway?" she asked.

"The child Xemnas told us is the keyblade chosen one's little sister." A voice answered, making Axel and Larxene turn to face the man. He walked closer to the other two cloaked members, a smirk gracing his lips. "Apparently, she has something Xemnas wants in that head of hers." he continued.

Naminé turned her head to face the man, Marluxia, when he mentioned the Organization's leader's name. She frowned before looking away, but she continued to listen to the three member's conversation. It was rare of them to have a meeting with her beside them. They usually had their meeting at the the next room where they monitor Sora, Donald and Goofy through a giant crystal ball.

"Oh? How wonderful." Larxene smiled in delight, amused with the new information. "If we have that brat on our side as well, overthrowing the Organization will be three times as easy!" she said, eyes gleaming with mischief.

Axel raised an eyebrow. "That's...interesting... What could Xemnas possibly want inside a teenage girl's head?" he crossed his arms, turning to the pink-haired man.

"Who knows?" Marluxia briefly closed his eyes, the smirk still plastered on his lips. When he first heard from Xemnas' second hand man, Saix, that another visitor would be coming soon to Castle Oblivion, he was less than uninterested of the incoming visitor. But after he learned that the child is the keyblade chosen one's younger sibling and that the child has memories Xemnas wanted, he couldn't be more delighted. "All that matters is getting the child here first." he said, his eyes staring at Axel and Larxene.

"Couldn't agree more." Larxene grinned, moving her finger in a swift motion. Is a flash, a yellow and blue throwing knife was seen between her fingers. She stared at the sharp edge of the knife, a smirk on her growing on her lips. "It'll be really fun to break this one!" she flicked her wrist, throwing the knife to the little birdcage at the corner of the room.

Naminé flinched when the knife grazed the metal bars of the birdcage before it embed itself to the wall behind it. She lifted her head up to look at the doll sitting inside the cage. The knife didn't embed through the doll, but it did leave a mark on the wall. Larxene thought it would be hilarious to put a doll that looks like her inside a white birdcage to represent her life in Castle Oblivion. Larxene was right in every way. She was forced to stay inside this castle to alter Sora's memories. Just like a caged bird.

Axel frowned. "Don't break this one, Larxene. It'll be a shame if she's broken before we can even use her against the Organization." he said, staring at the sadistic woman.

"Oh no big deal!" Larxene simply waved Axel off. "We just need to shape her into our liking, just like what we did to Sora. Isn't that right, Naminé?" she turned her head to the quiet blonde.

Marluxia's blue eyes stared at the young girl. "Don't you think it's weird that the girl hasn't arrived yet?" he asked his fellow comrades, walking pass the two as he made his way towards the blonde girl.

"That's what I said, but who cares if the girl's stupid or not, if she's important to Xemnas then that's all that matters." Larxene smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.

The pink haired man stopped beside the blonde girl. "You wouldn't have anything to do with it now, would you, Naminé?" he leaned slightly down, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I just... do what you told me to..." Naminé said quietly.

"Good girl." Marluxia said, patting the blonde's head as he straightened his posture. He turned to face both Larxene and Axel. "Perhaps, the child just needs some guidance to reach Castle Oblivion." he said, a smirk gracing his lips.

Naminé closed her eyes. _'I'm sorry...'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari huffed.

"Aw c'mon, you know that Cloud was only joking."

Hikari turned to look at her roommate from her bed. "He really did booked a table!" she sat up on her bed and turned her position to face the other bed where her roommate was polishing her shuriken. "Am I really that bad? You guys like the stew me and Aerith made right?" she asked.

Yuffie laughed. "Sorry, Hikari, as your bestie I have to be honest with you. If Aerith told me it was you and her who made it, I wouldn't even go near it." she said, placing the shuriken away.

Hikari placed a hand on her chest. "Argh! Your words are like a knife that stabbed my heart!" she said dramatically, falling back on the bed. Her eyes stared at the ceiling. The room kind of reminded her of her own back at Destiny Islands. Both Yuffie and Hikari shared a room. It was small, but cozy and she liked the company. It was nice having someone to talk to at a time like this. "Hey Yuffie... Did you ever forget something really important? Like, really, really important things?" she suddenly asked.

Yuffie blinked before she plopped down on the bed, her head hitting the soft pillow. "All the time. I sometimes forget to patrol or take the trash out. Why ask?" she shrugged.

Hikari also moved to a better position, pulling the blanket up before laying her head down on the pillow. "I... don't know why... But I think I forgot something...something that I'm not supposed to forget." she said, turning to face her friend.

The black-haired girl yawned. "Don't worry about it. People forget all the time. Maybe you forgot to take the trash out or someone's birthday." she trailed off, her eyes getting heavier and heavier. Not a minute later, the girl was already asleep.

Hikari laughed before turning her head to stare back at the ceiling. "Yeah... maybe..." she trailed off before closing her eyes.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"See you guys later!"

"Please be careful!"

"Okay!" Hikari grinned as she exited Merlin's house. She closed the wooden door behind her and took a deep breath of the fresh morning air of Hollow Bastion. Since she returned early and had a good night's sleep yesterday, today she decided to continue looking for Castle Oblivion. She didn't know why, but as she woke up, her mind felt clear. It was weird because just yesterday, her thoughts were clouded. "Okay then! Let's start!" she exclaimed as she took out the Star Shard from her pouch.

As she points the Star Shard to the sky, her eyes wondered from the Star Shard to the castle in the background. She lowered the shard, her blue eyes fixed on the castle. A feeling inside her gut told her to head over to the castle, but her mind told her to stay away from the castle. She put the Star Shard away, deciding to trust her gut more than her mind. She knew that it was dangerous for her to wonder the castle alone.

' _But a few minutes is alright, right?'_ Hikari thought as she headed straight for the castle. _'Besides... It's not like I don't know where I'm going.'_ she continued as she made her way towards the Bailey.

"So you still waste your time wondering in this world." a voice startled her. She quickly turned around and summoned her rod to hand. She stood in a fighting stance, furrowing her eyebrows at the cloaked figure that stood a few feet away from her. "It is such a waste of precious time." the man continued.

Hikari blinked. "You're that guy from the library!" she shouted, pointing her rod accusingly at the man. Her angry look soon turned to a confused one when she realized that the voices aren't the same. "No, wait... That guy's voice was much more heavier...but you wear matching outfits too. Are you a friend of his then?" she questioned, lowered her rod a little as she began to think.

The cloaked figure let out a small chuckle. "Perhaps the word acquaintances fit much better for the term." he replied. Hikari shook her head, staring at the man with raised eyebrows. Well, this guy is definitely different from the last one she encountered. The last one was all dark and creepy. This one seemed a little more...elegant? But still has the same level of creepiness.

Hikari frowned, summoning away her rod. "Either way, you know that guy, right? You work in the same group?" she asked as she reached into her pocket, fishing out the blue card. She showed the card to the cloaked figure. "I'm beginning to think all of this is just some stupid scam. I never found this Castle Oblivion. Just some stupid endless road." she flicked her wrist, throwing the card away.

The card landed right in front of the man's feet, the picture of the castle on top.

"Pass on the message. Tell your friend that I have a few questions to ask him." The brunette continued.

The cloaked man picked the card from the floor. "Are you sure you don't want to find the answers yourself?" he asked, holding the card between his fingers.

"What do you mean?" Hikari stared at the cloaked man weirdly.

The cloaked man raised his hand and summoned a portal. "I'm tasked to lead you to the castle since you seemed to have some trouble reaching it." he answered. "But in that place, to find is to lose, and to lose is to find. That is the way of Castle Oblivion." he said, turning his head to look at the girl.

Hikari gave a look. "That doesn't make sense at all."

"Does it?" The cloaked man threw the card back at Hikari, who caught it. "So what's your decision?"

"I'll give it a shot."

Hikari held the card as she walked towards the portal. The last time she walked through one of these were when she was still with Maleficent and Riku, but that's all in the past now. She shook the memories away before putting one foot inside the portal. One foot after another, she was already walking through the portal, the man following behind her. She summoned her rod into hand as she was still cautious of the man behind her. Who wouldn't actually?

The brunette stared at the end of the portal. She stepped through the end of the portal and closed her eyes when she was engulfed by a bright light. She shielded her eyes with her forearm as the light slowly dies down. She slowly opened her eyes, waiting for them to adjust to the light.

Her blue eyes glanced around, examining the brand new surroundings. It was all white. The walls, the floor, the doors, everything. Every single thing inside the place was colored white. With all of the white color reflecting the bright lighting of the room, her eyes began to hurt a little from seeing the same color.

"Argh... It's so bright..." Hikari complained as she squinted her eyes. She turned her head to the double door, easily spotting the cloaked man in the white room. He stood out like a sore thumb in the room with his black clothing. The man showed a card to the girl and slide it with his fingers, reviling another card behind it. He tossed the two cards to her and she wasn't fast enough to catch them. She picked the two blue cards up from the floor, staring at the picture on them. "What's this? Are you giving me cards to play some sort of card game?" she snorted.

On one card, a picture of the world Traverse Town was printed on it. On the other card, a picture of a world with a cottage, a spooky forest and some sort of mime was on it.

"Those are your memories of the worlds that you have visited. Hold the card to open the door. And beyond it, a world awaits." the cloaked man said as he stepped aside, directing his hand to the door behind him. He soon disappeared into a dark portal that he summoned, leaving the brunette alone in the white room.

Hikari raised the two cards in her hand, staring at them intensely. "A world behind a door... That's something I would like to see..." she said as she walked towards the double door.

She held the Traverse Town's card and pocketed the other one.

"Alright then, let's do it!"


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey guys! How have you all been? I wish you all (a very late) Merry Christmas and a (late) Happy New Year!

We're only a week away from the release of KH 2.8 here in Japan :D

I can't resist it, so I pre-ordered the game! Hooray! But it will be in Japanese, so it might be a little hard for me to translate. I thought that maybe I will learn Japanese faster if I play video games so yeah haha. Wish me luck!

Anyway, please look forward to Little Adventures and Forget Me Not! I know it might be confusing to link everything together at the moment because I'm not updating that frequently, but I hope you guys can link everything together ^_^

Thank you so much for everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed this story! You guys are the best!

Guest: Let's hope that she can.

Gry20: Maybe haha

Guest 2: Thank you! It took a while to get Ven's pose right. Hehe, I guess I'm having too much fun. I know right? And the CGI! Gosh! So beautiful. I agree, the wayfinder trio needs more love. And lol!

DisneyFreak-Lover: oh No!

Lulu9814: Haha yeah. And we'll see *wink* *wink*

Dylvision: 1. Awwww thank you so much! 2. That's actually an awesome idea. I'll see what I can do to fit Sephiroth. 3. Aww thank you! You can do it! Practice makes perfect :D

c-guest: Hello! Thank you so much! And yeah, you're my first Cuban fan xD. Your English is very good, don't worry. English is not my first language either haha

guest (Gamergirl): It will all be reviled slowly as the chapter goes ;)

guest 3: thank you! Here's an update :D

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 3  
Familiar

* * *

"Is something wrong Zexion?"

Said man hummed in reply. "I… picked up another scent in the castle." He said, placing his hand on his chin.

"Another one? An intruder?" another man asked.

Zexion closed his eyes. "No… this scent is different. Familiar if I should say so myself." He continued before turning to the other two in the room. "It appears that the scent is coming from the first floor of the castle." He added.

The long-haired man scowled. "Honestly! What are those Nobodies doing up there?"

"You were the one who was up there before." The other one grunted out. He ignored how the long-haired man looked at him. It was the look of 'I'm more superior to you, have some respect'. The man turned to face Zexion, a frown on his face. "Didn't the Superior informed us of a new visitor?"

"That was weeks ago, do you really think that this visitor just showed up now, Lexaeus?" the long-haired man turned his head to face the curly-haired man, his arms crossed over his chest.

Lexaeus grunted. "It could be. It was a coincidence that we found Riku in the lowest basement. Did you forget about that already, Vexen?"

Vexen looked offended. "How dare you! You're only number V! I'm your superior!" he shouted, furrowing his eyebrows.

Zexion's eyes widened for a brief moment. "Of course, this scent…" he trailed off, making Vexen stop glaring at Lexaeus. The two men stared at the shorter man. The dark-blue-haired man's lips quirked up a little to a smirk before turning his head to his two comrades who were waiting for him to continue. "It seems that Hikari has arrived." He said.

"Are you talking about that little girl?" Lexeaus raised an eyebrow.

Zexion nodded. "Correct. Sora's little sister."

Vexen smirked. "How intriguing…" he rubbed his chin. "If we have that girl on our side as well as Riku… Marluxia will have no chance against us." He planned.

Zexion gave another nod. "But it's a shame that she has already advanced to the first floor. Perhaps Marluxia has already made Naminé do her magic on her." He frowned.

"It's never too late to interfere."

The ginger-haired man turned to the scientist. "What are you planning, Vexen?" the man asked. One look at the scientist face and he already knew what the man was thinking. "If you're planning on using Riku's replica, then you better reconsider." He said.

From Riku's memories, he knew that the two didn't get along very well at the end. Both Hikari and Riku kept on fighting each other like cats and dogs. If Vexen used Riku Replica to confront Hikari, things won't look so good on their side. Hikari will just end up trying to eliminate the replica, rather than listening to him or following him to them.

"Lexaeus is right. We better plan things out before using your replica, Vexen."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Huh?"

A silver-haired boy stopped walking as he noticed something different in the castle he was in. He stood in the middle of the white room, pondering.

"Something's different… Did another member of that Organization came here?" Riku voiced his thoughts, looking up to the ceiling. He noticed that the scent came from floors above him. He lowered his head and furrowed his eyebrows as he began to think. "No… it can't be… this scent is really familiar... almost like…" his blue-green eyes widened when a certain girl came across his mind.

"Hikari!" Riku shouted as he glanced back up to the ceiling. A smile graced his lips. He never would've thought that he would meet Hikari again, in a place like this at that. Sure, he was relieved, but at the same time, he was really concerned knowing that Hikari was here, in this castle, facing the Organization members alone… At that thought he quickly ran towards the next door, a determined look across his face. "No way! There's no way I'm letting you face them alone!" he gritted his teeth as he pulled out another card.

He reached his hand out to push the door, but stopped when flashes of his memories came up. From the part where he yelled at her to the part where he fought her with his keyblade. It hurts him, when he remembered the bad things he did to the younger girl. But what hurt him the most was when Ansem took over his body. He remembered how hurt and angry Hikari was at him. At that time, he could only watch as Hikari attacked him and Ansem, demanding him to give Sora back.

He was at fault back then. He realized that.

What if Hikari hates him?

Riku shook his head. "No… first things first… I have to find her. I'll worry about that later." He said as he pushed the door open.

"I'm coming, Hikari."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"No way…" Hikari said in amazement as she looked around. When she stepped through the door, she was no longer in the white room, instead she was in a whole new environment. "This is Traverse Town!" she exclaimed.

Traverse Town disappeared once she along with Cid, Cloud and the chipmunks left the world. Ever since then, she couldn't come back to the world to look for her missing brother and friends. She asked Aerith about it and Aerith told her that Traverse Town only appears when there are survivors of the worlds lost to the Heartless. Since Sora, Donald and Goofy defeated Ansem and somehow returned the worlds back to the Realm of Light, the people in Traverse Town went back to their original world, leaving the world empty.

The brunette stared at the buildings around her before glancing up to the starry sky. She walked closer to a streetlight and knocked on the mental pole, making sure that everything she was seeing isn't fake. She blinked and placed her hand on the surface of the cold metal. Her hand didn't go through the material. This was all real. "Wow… Am I really back at Traverse Town?" she asked aloud.

"What you see is not real." A voice said, answering Hikari's question. The brunette quickly turned around to look at where she heard the man. She furrowed her eyebrows when there was no one behind her. She turned back around when she felt a heavy atmosphere behind her. She stood in a fighting stance, narrowing her rod at the cloaked man. "This town is an illusion created by your memories ingrained in that card." The man continued, lifting his finger up to point at the card in Hikari's hand.

Hikari lowered her stance and lifted the card up to her face, staring intensely at the picture of the other card. "My memories? Is that even possible?" she said under her breath with a frown.

"Castle Oblivion allows you to venture into your own memories, even to the ones that you have forgotten." The cloaked man explained. He turned his head to the left, making Hikari turn her head to look to the direction he was looking. Her eyes widened when she saw a few people wondering around the First District. They weren't just any people. They were the people she met back when she was in Traverse Town! She even spotted the Moogle who sold her the fire resistance ring! "You've seen everything in this world. It's no surprise that you would also meet the people in your memories." he continued.

The brunette then tried to look for the other card, the one that has the picture of Traverse Town on it.

"The card that you used to go through is no longer in your grasp. Once you used the card, it will disappear as you used it to create this place." The man explained as if he knew what Hikari was thinking. He then motioned his hand to their surroundings.

Hikari shook her head and glared at the man. "What's the point in all of this anyway? Is Sora really here?" She shouted as she remembered the reason why she agreed to come along with this man. "I came here only to look for Sora, Donald and Goofy, so answer clearly this time! I want a simple yes or no!" she lowered herself to a fighting stance.

The man stayed quiet, staring at Hikari from under his hood. "Are you sure you want to look for them _only_?" he asked.

The brunette gave the man a look. "What do you mean _'only'_? Of course, _'them only'_! Who else should I look for?" her eyebrows were furrowed down as she changed her expression to an angry look.

"How intriguing…" The man hummed, placing his hand on his chin.

"What?" Hikari frowned. She was beginning to lose her temper with the way this man was talking to her. From the start, this man avoided all of her questions and answered them with another question. Perhaps it was wrong of her to trust this man. "You know what? Forget this! I'm going back!" she turned around, walking away from the man.

The man suddenly appeared a few feet in front of her, stopping her from taking another step forward. Hikari took a step back and readied herself to fight. The brunette watched as the man raised his hand. Out of nowhere, rose petals began to appear around the man. The petals gathered around his hand and a second later, they were blown away when a scythe appeared in his grasp.

"It's a shame, but I'm afraid I cannot let you return." The man said, swinging his scythe.

Hikari gritted her teeth. "You wanna fight? Fine! You've asked for it!" she ran forward, aiming her rod at the man.

The brunette swung her rod straight for the man's stomach, but she missed when he stepped back. She continued to swing her rod at the man, trying to land a hit on him. She also casted a few spells to try and hit the man with magic, but the man easily avoided all of her attacks. Her rod and the man's scythe finally clashed. The man easily held his position while Hikari tried her best to push him back.

"Did you really think you can defeat me?" the man asked, looking down at her.

Hikari glared at the man, narrowing her eyes at him. Now that they were closer, she could finally see a part of his face. Strands of pink hair was seen as it framed his long face. She scowled when she saw a smirk on his lips. She was taken aback when the man pushed her back with his weapon. She staggered back a few steps, but she quickly recovered when she saw him raise his scythe. She raised her left hand and casted a Barrier around herself. The scythe grazed the Barrier in the first swing, but after the second, the blade of the scythe penetrated the Barrier, breaking it.

Hikari quickly sidestepped away from the attack. She dodged down when the man aimed for her head. She did a back handspring with one hand as the man swung his leg, attempting to kick her. She stopped a few feet away from the man, skidding to a stop. The brunette raised her rod in front of her, her blue eyes locked on the man like a hawk.

The man let out a chuckle. "Not bad, Hikari. Not bad at all." He summoned the scythe away. "As expected from the keyblade chosen one's little sister."

" _Keyblade chosen one's_ … So, you _do_ know Sora!" The brunette's eyes widened when the man said her name, but what surprised her the most is what the man said after. "No more confusing words or games! Tell me where he is! Are you keeping him captive here?!" she demanded, glaring at him.

"The further you go through this castle, the more chance you will find him." The man answered.

"That's didn't answer my question!" Hikari balled up her hands, trying her best to stay calm. "Just who are you anyway?"

The man lifted both his hands to the side of his head. He pulled his hood down, reviling his face to the girl standing a few feet before him. Blue eyes were locked onto another pair of blue eyes. His hair was softer in color than Hikari thought. One of the things that stood out from this man is his pink hair. It was her first time seeing someone with pink hair, let alone a guy with it. She shook her head, shaking the thoughts away. She needed to focus. This guy was stronger than her and she was staring at the abnormal color of his hair!

"I'm Marluxia, number XII of Organization XIII, Ruler of this castle." The pink-haired man, Marluxia, addressed himself.

"Number XII? Organization XIII?" Hikari repeated, raising her eyebrow at the man's title. She never heard of such organization before. In fact, she never heard any besides her own, the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee. She wanted to know more of this Organization XIII. This man seemed to know a lot about the keyblade and her brother. If she can find out more of this organization, she might be a step closer to find her brother. "What's that?" she asked curiously.

Marluxia smirked. "Perhaps you should go and seek the answers yourself." He answered, making Hikari glare at him. The girl is more easy to provoke than her brother, he noted. While Sora was easy to trick, Hikari wasn't as easy. From the start, she was doubtful to follow him. Sora and his friends on the other hand were easy to lure. Maybe she started to doubt when she began to grow hatred for her other friend. He knew little about her feelings of the other boy, but when she said that she only wants to look for Sora, Donald and Goofy, he was certain. "After all, the moment you step foot in the castle you can only advance forward." He said.

"What? That's stupid! I can go back to that white room! Watch!" Hikari glanced around, looking for the door she used to enter the room. Her eyes scanned the First District, but she didn't find the door that leads to the room before. She didn't want to admit that the man was right. "W-Well, how am I supposed to move forward too if there's no door?" she quickly recovered, narrowing her eyes at the man.

Marluxia's smirked widened, "Use the card, for this castle is ruled by them." He explained and before Hikari could retort, he raised his hand, summoning a portal. "Explore this world and you might find it, at the mean time I bid you farewell." He stepped inside the portal and gave a smirk as the portal closed.

"Wait!" Hikari ran forward, reaching her hand out to the man, but she was too late as the portal closed before she could even reach it. She summoned her rod away. "Aw man! What am I supposed to do now?" she sighed deeply, crossing her arms.

An idea suddenly crossed her mind. "Wait a minute! I still have the Star Shard!" she snapped her fingers in realization, a grin on her face. She reached her hand inside her pouch and pulled out the shard, staring at the star-shaped gummi block in triumph. "Heh! Serves that girly man for underestimating me!" she raised the Star Shard above her head.

"Alright Star Shard, take me away-!"

"Hey," A hand on her shoulder made her stop mid-sentence. She turned her head and her eyes widened when she saw a familiar man with a scar across his face. Her jaw dropped down as she continues to stare. "Where did you get that?" he asked.

"LEON?!" Hikari shouted.

Leon blinked. "How do you know my name?"

Hikari gave him a look. "Are you serious? Wait… this is a joke, right?" she raised her hand and Leon stared at her finger. His eyes twitched when she poked his left cheek a few times.

"Okay, that's enough, Hikari." Leon said in annoyance as he grabbed Hikari's wrist to stop her.

"It was a joke! You're such a bad liar!" Hikari laughed. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you said that you can't use the gummi ship?" she asked as Leon released her wrist.

Leon raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? We just met…"

"But you know my name…" Hikari trailed off, the smile disappearing from her face. "…did you really forget about me?" she asked sadly.

"Sorry…" Leon apologized. He placed his hand on the side of his head as he stared at the ground. "I… don't get it. Something's wrong with my memory."

"Yeah… You forgot about me." Hikari grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. She was really upset that Leon had forgot everything about her. They fought Heartless together and spend a lot of times hanging out with the other members of the committee within the past month. She stopped thinking negatively when she played back what Leon had said. "Wait… did you say ' _memory_ '?" she asked, turning her head to face him.

Leon nodded. "Yes."

Hikari placed her hand on her chin, frowning. _'That guy said that this is from my memories, right? Does this mean that this Leon is the one in my memories before we became friends? But then… how did he know my name? Argh! This is so confusing!'_ she thought as she held her head in frustration.

"Hey," she heard Leon called. The brunette turned her head to him and he crossed his arms. "Maybe… Aerith knows what's going on… after all, she was the one who had 'the feeling'." He said.

"Where's Aerith—!" Hikari stopped when Heartless suddenly appeared, surrounding them. The two quickly faced the Heartless, standing back to back. Hikari summoned her rod as Leon pulled out his gunblade. "This is my memories… can't I just think to make the Heartless disappear?" she mumbled to herself before closing her eyes tightly, imagining the Heartless to disappear.

When she opened her eyes, she was surprised to see a Heartless coming right at her. Her eyes widened when she felt an arm wrapped around her torso and she felt her body being lifted. It was Leon who pulled her away to safety. He swung his gunblade at the Heartless, killing it off.

Hikari sighed. "That didn't work…" she mumbled as Leon placed her down.

Leon glanced over his shoulder. "Focus. Do you want to be killed by them?"

Hikari shook the thoughts away and nodded her head. "Let's do this!" she shouted before lunging forward, her rod ready in hand. "Fire!" she casted.

Leon moved too, attacking the Heartless coming his way. The two made their way through Heartless after Heartless. Hikari glanced over her shoulder to check on how Leon was doing. She quickly turned around when she saw a Heartless sneaking up on her friend. She pointed her rod at Leon and the man saw that she was pointing her weapon at him.

"Blizzard!" Hikari casted and the ray of blue light hit the floating Heartless behind the scarred man, turning it into a crystal of ice. Leon swung his gunblade around, killing the Heartless inside the ice. It was the last of the Heartless. The young magic user approached the man with a grin on her face. "See? We make a great team!" she smiled.

Leon nodded his head in agreement. "I can see that." He said before motioning his hand for Hikari to follow him. "Follow me."

Hikari did as told. She followed him through the First District. Her eyes wondered to the people around her and to the stores. It was the same as she remembered. A small smile made its way up to her lips. She has to admit. This castle is amazing for recreating Traverse Town. She glanced up when she noticed the familiar bring neon lights of the hotel. She went inside the hotel after Leon and she followed him to one of the rooms. He knocked on the door before opening it.

"Aerith." Leon said as he entered the room.

Hikari stepped inside the room and her eyes landed on the woman sitting on the bed with a familiar ninja and a wizard standing beside her. "Aerith! Yuffie! Merlin!" she grinned.

Yuffie blinked. "Huh? Have we met before, Hikari?"

Hikari groaned. "Oh come on! Not you too!" she shouted as she slumped her shoulder in disappointment. She turned her head to face Merlin and Aerith. "I suppose you don't remember about me too, huh?" she gave them both a small smile. "And Fairy Godmother and Cid too?" she added.

Merlin tilted his head. "I'd say… it is strange… you knew of Fairy Godmother and Cid as well. This is strange indeed." He stroked his beard, humming in thought.

Aerith nodded her head. "Yes…"

Leon turned to face Aerith. "Do you know what's going on?"

Aerith placed her hand on her chin. "I'm… not certain as well, but I feel like something is effecting our memories." She said, turning to face Hikari.

The brunette sighed deeply. Memories. Memories. Maybe everything here is fake. She had to keep reminding herself that this is not real, just like what Marluxia had said. This is a figment of her memories. Traverse Town, her friends and everyone in it are fake. She scratched the back of her head, giving a sheepish smile. "Well… I'm not sure about it too… I guess we're all in the same boat." She laughed a little.

Aerith gave a smile as she stood up. "If it makes you feel better, we can talk for a bit, see if you can make me remember about you." She said, walking closer to the young girl.

Hikari nodded. "Great idea." She turned to face Leon and the other two. "I guess I'll talk to you guys later."

Leon crossed his arms, nodding his head. "Yeah."

The two brunettes exited the room and walked across the hall of the hotel.

Aerith glanced down to look at Hikari. "Are you feeling alright?" she asked as she noticed the sad look on the younger girl's face.

Hikari turned to face the woman and gave her the best reassuring smile she could muster. "Yeah… just… confused, that's all."

"I can see that… this is just a figment of your memories after all." Aerith said, making Hikari stop walking. The woman turned around to face the young girl. "Your heart is what kept us from forgetting." She continued.

Hikari placed a hand over her heart and glanced up to look at Aerith. "This is so confusing… You don't remember me, but you said that my heart is what keeping you guys from forgetting me… And this is from my memories… shouldn't you guys remember? So what's going on here?" she asked.

Aerith sighed. "I'm sorry… the truth is beyond my reach." She walked closer to the young girl, placing her hand on her shoulder. Hikari glanced up to look at the woman, a small frown on her face. "After this you'll face more illusions, please be aware or else the shadow of your memories will deceive you. Don't let it distract you from what's truly important to you." She advised.

Hikari gave a bitter laugh. "Right… but then even if I found Sora, Donald or Goofy here, they will still be a figment of my memories, right? A fake." She looked down to stare at her shoes. She didn't receive a reply from Aerith. A few seconds passed and a smile appeared on her lips as she placed her hand over her heart. "…but I would like to see them again… even if they're just a figment of my memories."

"You will find them." Aerith reassured, smiling.

"Yeah…" The younger brunette smiled in return, lifting her chin up to look at the older woman. "Thanks Aerith—huh?" she blinked confusedly when Aerith was not in front of her. She looked around, trying to find the woman, but she was nowhere to be seen. "Aerith? Where did you go?" she asked loudly.

The brunette walked back towards the hotel room where Leon and the others are waiting. "Maybe she went back to the others…" she mumbled as she continued to walk towards the hotel room. She stood in front of the door and grabbed the handle, pushing the door open. "Hey guys, have you seen—What the—?!" she exclaimed loudly.

Inside the hotel room weren't her friends or even a regular hotel room. It was the white room from before she stepped into the 'fake' Traverse Town. The brunette quickly stepped inside, leaving Traverse Town behind. The white door closed behind her with a soft thud. The brunette ran to the middle of the room, completely surprised. She stared at the white walls with wide eyes, her jaw dropped. She didn't expect to be back in the white room so soon.

"I'm back to where I started?!"

"Congratulations," a voice startled her, making her turn around. The pink-haired man was seen standing in front of another door, the same arrogant smirk on his face. Hikari gave the man a glare as she summoned her rod, lowering herself to a fighting stance. "You've completed the first floor." He continued.

"First?" Hikari echoed, narrowing her eyes.

"Of course, this castle is not just a floor high." Marluxia stated. He stepped away from the door, standing in the side as he directed his hand to the door behind him. "Advance to the next floor and the next world, and you shall be a step closer to find your precious brother." He said as a portal appeared behind him.

Hikari watched the black inky portal swallow the cloaked man. She straightened her posture when the portal disappeared along with the man. She summoned away her rod and took out the cards from her pocket. One was the picture of Castle Oblivion and the other was the one with a small cottage that looked similar to the one where the dwarves' lives in. She placed the card with a picture of the castle away, deciding to use the other one.

"Alright… let's see what will happen in this world…" Hikari mumbled as she pushed the door open.

A bright light engulfed her as she went through the door. She closed her eyes, bringing her arm up to cover her eyes from the light. When the light slowly died down, she opened her eyes. She squinted her eyes as they tried to adjust to the low lighting of the environment. It was dark, but not pitch black. She could still see her surroundings, just…cold and spooky.

"This… seems really familiar…" Hikari said out loud as she spun around in place slowly, her eyes examining her surroundings. The trees around her were dead, but no sunlight came through because of the thick fog. The air was damp and the hooting owls made it worse. The brunette cleared her throat when she noticed that she was alone in the spooky forest. "Is this… Halloween Town? But my clothes didn't change…" she looked down to examine her clothes.

"Maybe I should… walk around…" Hikari said as she shuffled her feet nervously. She put one foot forward and then the other. She swallowed the uneasy feeling she was getting from this world. It was as if someone was watching her. She glanced over to her right when she saw something other than the dark colors of the forest. A green cleared with flowers blooming were seen in the distance. It stood out because of the colors. "…it seems really familiar." She decided to go look at the grassy field.

"Hey!"

A voice stopped her from taking a step further. She quickly turned around to where she heard the source. The funny thing was, she didn't summon her rod when she heard the voice called out to her. When Marluxia and that friend of his appeared behind her and spoke in their deep baritone voice, she quickly summoned her rod, but this time…she didn't.

Hikari's eyes widened when she laid eyes on the person who called her. "Y-You—!" she stared at the person, her lips slightly parted.

A teenage boy was seen in front of her, his hands on his knees to support him as he tried to catch his breath. Her blue eyes stared at the boy's hair, blond and spiky before moving to his unusual choice of clothing. Sure, she had seen Leon's obsession with belts and Sora's unusual choice of shoes, but what the boy was wearing is unique. Black, white, green and metal plates.

"Have… you seen a little girl around here?" The boy panted out, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "A masked boy brought her here and left her alone. I have to find her before he does." He explained.

Hikari shook her head, finally snapping out from her thoughts. "No… I uh… just got here too." She answered, staring at the blond. "Are you… a part of my memory too? I don't remember anything about you, but you seemed really familiar…" she said, before she face-palmed.

She just realized that she sounded just like when Leon, Yuffie, Aerith and Merlin met her in the Castle Oblivion version of Traverse Town. "Oh man! Not me too!" she suddenly shouted.

"What are you talking—!" The boy lifted his head up and his eyes widened when he saw Hikari, who was equally as shocked as he is. A pair of blue eyes stared back at his own. He straightened his posture, keeping his eyes on the girl in front of him. "Now that you mention it… you're oddly familiar too…" he trailed off.

"I guess were on the same boat." Hikari laughed. "What's your name anyway?" she asked.

The blond gave a small smile.

"Ventus, but call me Ven."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I just played 2.8 …. And…. Um… how can I say this? It was beautiful! Really! The graphics are so beautiful and awesome and Aqua's really pretty and words can't describe it!

But anyway… I found it both freaky and awesome that the story I'm planning for Aqua and Mickey in my stories are almost the same as 2.8, even before I played the game…

But nevertheless, I'll stick to my plot for them both and Hikari :D (with a little change)

Guest: Thank you so much! Oh haha really? Xd

c-guest: Stay away from Hikari you creepy men! Not at all ^^, it's Indonesian.

Lulu9814: Go Riku go! Lol. And here's the next chapter.

NyxStichez: Thank you so much!

AllSpark Princess: Here's the next update! :D

Guest: Thank you so much! I don't know why, but I don't like Vexen too lol! And yup! Nicknames, nicknames for everyone lol!

Thank you so much for everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed this story!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 4  
Memory

* * *

"Ven, huh?" Hikari repeated, a smile appearing on her lips. She didn't know why, but she was feeling happy all of the sudden. It was almost like something heavy was lifted up from the bottom of her heart. There was something about this boy that made her feel relieved and happy at the same time, even if she doesn't recall ever meeting him before Castle Oblivion. "Nice to meet you. The name's Hikari." She introduced as she reached her hand out.

Ventus blinked. "That's funny… the kid that I'm looking for is named Hikari too." He laughed as he took Hikari's hand, shaking it up and down.

The brunette also laughed. "Wow… I guess the name Hikari is a little overrated, huh?" she grinned as Ventus returned her grin. It didn't bother her knowing that the kid Ventus is looking for has the same name as her. Once in a while, there's bound to be someone who will have the same name as her. Even at Destiny Islands, there are girls and boys who has the same name. "Well then, how about I help you find Hikari and—huh?!" she exclaimed in surprise when strange creatures suddenly appeared around them. "Are these new types of Heartless?!" she shouted.

The blond quickly moved in front of her. "Unversed! Stay back, Hikari! Let me handle this!" he lowered his body into a stance. His hand glow brightly before a familiar weapon appeared in his grasp.

"Is that a keyblade?! What's going on here?!" Hikari stared at the keyblade with wide eyes. She thought that there were only two keyblades! One is Sora's and the other one belongs to Riku.

"No time to explain! You have to find somewhere safe to hide!" Ventus ordered as he glanced over his shoulder.

Hikari frowned. "I can fight too!" she raised her hand and summoned her rod. She turned her head to Ventus who looked surprised for a brief moment before he nodded his head. The two stood back to back as they faced the dark blue creatures called 'the Unversed'. They dashed forward, swinging their weapons at the creatures, taking them out one by one. Hikari furrowed her eyebrows, glaring at the creatures. "Freeze!" She casted as she pointed her rod.

A blue ray of light was shot out from the head of her rod and hit the Unversed. She quickly swung her rod at the frozen Unversed, killing it off in one swing. She turned her head to another one of the Unversed and swung her rod at it when all of the sudden, it sinks into the ground, similar to what a Shadow Heartless would do. The brunette's eyes widened as she watched the blue blob move around the ground. Her blue eyes followed the blob, trying to pinpoint the location where it would strike her.

The brunette's eyes were averted to the right when she saw an incoming attack from the other Unversed around them. She raised her rod, blocking the claws that was about to strike her. She grunted when the claws made contact with the shaft of her rod. The held the head of her rod as she tried to push back the Unversed. She pushed the head of her rod at the direction of the Unversed, pushing it back. She held her rod with both of her hands, pointing it at the staggering Unversed.

"Fire!" fire was shot out from her rod, hitting her target. The surprise didn't stop. The Unversed that was similar to the Shadow Heartless suddenly jumped up from the ground, it's pointed claws ready. The brunette quickly jumped back, avoiding the attack. In mid-air, she quickly cast another spell at the Unversed. "Fira!" a bigger fire ball was shot at the Unversed, killing a few in the process.

Hikari landed on the ground with a soft thud, skidding to a stop. She turned her head to check on her blond friend. "Ven! Behind you!" she shouted as she pulled back her hand to throw her rod at the Unversed.

At the same time, Ventus saw the Unversed sneaking behind the younger girl. "Hikari! Get down!"

The two threw their weapons at each other and leaped forward, avoiding each other's weapons. They ran to the middle and dodge rolled to avoid the Unversed's attacks. They crossed each other as their weapons spun back into their hand.

"Take this!" Hikari shouted as she cast Blizzard.

"It's over!" Ventus leaped forward, slashing the Unversed. He took a deep breath when he finished. He straightened his posture and summoned his keyblade away. He turned around just in time to see Hikari finishing the last Unversed. He walked towards the girl, stopping behind her. "We make a pretty good team, huh? Even though we've just pretty much met today." He smiled.

Hikari summoned her rod away, turning around to face him. "Yeah." She nodded her head in agreement. Her smile was replaced with a small frown when she noticed something a little off about the forest. Her eyes glanced around, examining their surroundings.

Ventus tilted his head when he noticed the frown. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

The brunette placed her hand on her chin. "This place… is where the dwarves live, right?" she asked turning back.

"You know them?" Ventus asked, surprised.

"Then that means…" Realization struck Hikari when a thought came to mind. Her eyes widened slightly when an image of Snow White flashed before her eyes. "We have to get to Snow White!" she spun around in her heels, dashing towards where the cabin is.

"Huh? Wait!" Ventus quickly ran after the younger girl, trying to catch up with her. It didn't take him long to reach the girl's speed. He ran beside her, staring at her with a small frown. "Snow White's fine. The one we really need to worry about is the kid! The Masked Boy is after her!" he reminded, afraid that Hikari had forgot.

The brunette nodded her head. "I know, I know. We can ask Snow White if she has seen the kid or not. I know this is all in my head, but I want to at least try and protect her here when I can't in the real world." She replied as she ran faster. She remembered clearly when Riku indirectly told her that he kidnapped Snow White for Maleficent. It was during the time she was picking the dwarves up from the mine. This time she has the chance to stop Riku, even if it's just a remake from her memories. "We have to get there before Riku—," she slowed down when she noticed that Ventus stopped running.

"Riku? Who's he? The Masked Boy?" Ventus asked as he panted, taking a few deep breaths to calm his heart.

"No…" Hikari huffed out, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She averted her eyes away from looking at Ventus' eyes. Her eyes stared at the ground as a deep frown appeared on her lips. Memories of Riku flashed through her mind. Starting from they were kids to the time when she fought his version of Ansem. "He's… He used to be my friend." She answered quietly.

Ventus heard her. "Used to?"

Hikari turned around, looking down. "He sided with the wrong people and now my brother's missing. It's all because of him." she gritted her teeth, balling up her hands tightly. "I can never forgive him."

"Hikari…" Ventus reached his hand out to place his hand on the girl's shoulder. He patted the girl's shoulder, giving a smile. "Maybe if you—!" he stopped when he heard a voice.

"Hands off!"

The brunette blinked and turned her head to the direction where they heard the voice. "That sounds like a kid…" she trailed off.

"C'mon! That has to be her! She's in trouble!" Ventus quickly sprinted off to the direction of the little girl.

Hikari turned her head one last time to the direction where the cabin is before shaking her head. Snow White will have to wait, right now she has to help Ventus find the little girl who shared her name before The Masked Boy finds the little girl first. It was all strange to her. She never recalled meeting Ventus, or finding a little girl, or racing against the Masked Boy in Dwarf Woodlands. All she remembered from the world is that she brought Jasmine and Riku there, passed out, meet Snow White, find Kairi, help the dwarves and then fight Riku before the Star Shard zapped her to Traverse Town.

The brunette pushed back all of the thoughts when a clearing came to view. Ventus was a little ahead of her as he summoned his keyblade. Hikari did the same, summoning her rod into hand when she saw the Unversed surrounding a little girl. She quickened her pace, overrunning Ventus as he slowed down. The blond boy quickly wrapped his arm around the little girl and pulled her back as Hikari swung her rod at the Unversed in front of them.

Hikari stood in a fighting stance, narrowing her eyes at the Unversed. "Picking on a kid? How much low can you get?" she clicked her tongue when the Unversed seeped into the ground, the blue blobs moving around quickly. "I was being sarcastic!" she glared.

"Ven, you have to get the girl out of here! I'll handle the Unversed!" Hikari ordered, her back facing the two.

Ventus nodded his head. "Right! Please hang on until I come back!" he lifted the little girl up into his arms as he turned around, running away from the battlefield.

An Unversed ran past Hikari, heading straight for Ventus and the girl. The brunette quickly spun around, narrowing her rod at the Unversed.

"As if I'll let you!" she shouted as she casted Fire. The spell hit the Unversed, killing it off, successfully preventing it from attacking Ventus and the girl. "Leave that girl alone! What did she ever do to you anyway?!" she shouted as she lowered herself to a fighting stance.

Once Ventus and the little girl disappeared into the forest, all of the Unversed turned their attention to the only person in the field. The brunette's shoulders stiffened when the Unversed's red eyes were fixated on her. Her grip around the rod tightened, her eyes narrowing.

An Unversed lunged forward and she drew back her rod, swinging her rod like a baseball bat. Her rod made contact with the Unversed and it went through, killing it. She pointed her rod to another and cast Fire at it.

"Fire!" Hikari didn't wait for the fire ball to hit the Unversed. She turned her attention to the other Unversed. There were still more Unversed that she has to deal with. She trusts Ventus, she really do, but she also knew that Ventus will be too busy protecting the little girl than coming back to help her. Besides, she doesn't really need help with these Unversed. They were just like lesser Heartless, easy to take care of. "Is this all you got? I can do this all day!" she smirked, spinning her rod.

The brunette jumped back when an Unversed leaped from the ground. She threw her rod at it, killing a few in the way. From the corner of her eyes, she saw a larger Unversed sneaking up on her, she turned around and raised her hand to cast a barrier around herself. The barrier repelled the attacks and she dispelled the barrier a second after. She leaped up and caught her rod before she pointed it down at the Unversed bellow.

"Thunder!" Hikari casted, electrifying the Unversed to immobilize the bigger ones. She landed on the ground with a soft thud and quickly strike the nearest one, using the time she has left before they began to move again. Her eyes widened when a spinning keyblade passes right in front of her, taking out a few in its way. She turned her head to see the blond boy running towards her, the little girl nowhere to be found. "Why did you come back here?! The girl could be in trouble now!" she said as the boy stood beside her, facing the enemy.

"Don't worry, she's safe!" Ventus said as he glanced around, counting the numbers of the Unversed left around them. "Besides, I told you that I'll be back to help." He grinned.

Hikari sighed before lifting her chin up, a determined grin on her lips. "Alright then! Let's finish this!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"This place… isn't it…?"

Riku glanced around, his eyes scanning the dark forest. Right after he passed through the door, the whole scene changed drastically. It was bright and white at the castle, but now it was dark and cold. His footsteps made a squishing sound because of how damp the place was. Blue-green eyes narrowed when he saw a figure standing a few feet in front of him.

"You again?" Riku clicked his tongue as he summoned his keyblade. It was one of the Organization members he encountered a few floors before. Encountering them in almost each and every floor was really getting into his nerves. He didn't want to deal with them knowing that his friends are in danger. "I don't have time to deal with you, so make it quick." He raised his keyblade, positioning it above his head as he stood in a fighting stance.

The long-haired man gave a smirk. "Oh? Are you sure you don't have the time?"

Riku growled. "You're already wasting my time! Now get out of the way before I make you!"

As if Vexen's smirk could widen, his lips twitched up as his eyes gleamed. "What… an interesting development." He said, rubbing his chin. Just a few floors before, the boy was calm and collected, albeit a little snarky. "I assume you sensed her as well. It seems that you've changed when that girl arrived in the castle."

Riku's eyes widened. "So Hikari's really in this castle…" he mumbled under his breath, a small smile on his lips. He lifted his chin up and furrowed his eyebrows at Vexen, his eyes showing determination. "All the more reason why you should just get out of my way."

"With pleasure." Vexen took a few steps to the right, moving away to show something to the teen.

"Hikari?!" The keyblade wielder's eyes were wide when his eyes landed on the girl hunched over the ground, her hair covering her face. His eyes went back to Vexen, anger flashing in his eyes. "What did you do to her?!" he demanded.

"Oh no, it's more like what _you_ did to her." Vexen replied, stressing the word out.

"What?" Riku shook his head before he rushed forward, his keyblade drew back. He thrust his keyblade forward and Vexen avoided his attack, jumping into a safe distance. "Stop telling lies!"

The silver-haired stood in front of the brunette protectively, his keyblade raised high. The teen narrowed his eyes at Vexen, catching a glimpse of the man's sinister smirk. A few seconds passed and the man didn't move. He was only watching, as if he was waiting for something to happen. The teen decided it was safe to check on his friend for a minute or two. He gave a frown before he turned his head, looking over his shoulder to the girl behind him. He kneeled down beside the girl.

"Hikari?" Riku called out softly, giving a small smile. The brunette didn't reply. "It's okay now, I won't let the Organization hurt you." He placed a comforting hand on her back.

"Riku…" said boy stared at his friend, waiting for her to continue. His blue-green eyes widened when he saw the broken look across the girl's face. Her eyes red from how long she had cried. "Are you blind?" she said hoarsely as she summoned her weapon.

"Hikari—!" Riku quickly moved, blocking Hikari's attack with his keyblade. He jumped back, staring at the girl with shock. Even when Hikari was positioning herself for a fight, he didn't position himself for one. He didn't want to fight. He didn't want to fight his friend. "What's wrong? What did you do to her!" he demanded, turning to Vexen.

Vexen chuckled as he walked closer to Hikari, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Get your hands off her!" Riku shouted, anger in his tone.

"You see, Riku, the answer is quite obvious." Vexen began. He stood his ground, standing beside the brunette. "You were the one who did this to the poor girl." He continued.

Riku growled. "Lies! I would never hurt her!"

"Oh, but you did," Vexen raised his hand, motioning his hand for Riku to look at his surroundings to which he did. "You were the one who chose the path to work for the Dark Mistress and threw away all the friendship you had with this child. It is _you_ who hurt her the most, or have you forgotten, Riku?" the scientist grinned.

"That's…" Riku's eyes widened in realization. He remembered this place now. It was the world where he left Hikari alone when she needed him the most. His heart suddenly felt heavy when he recalled the memories. He remembered how he raised his keyblade against her, how they fought and now he realized how heart-broken his friend was back then. "Hikari… I…" he placed his hand on his chest. He was lost at words now.

What Vexen said was right.

Vexen smirked and leaned down. "Are you really going to let this act deceive you, child?" he asked and Riku snapped his attention back to the cloaked man. "He's just trying to warm his way back to make you tell where Kairi is." He continued, his eyes averting to Riku.

"That's not true! Hikari! Don't listen to him! He's—,"

"I… I won't let you take Kairi!" Hikari lifted her chin up, facing Riku.

"Defeat him, child, and protect the girl who is important to your brother." The man beside her gave another smirk.

"Why you—!" Riku shouted at the blond man and clicked his tongue in annoyance. He turned his attention back to Hikari, summoning his keyblade away. "Hikari. I know what I did was wrong. I'm sorry. I really am." He took a step forward.

Hikari gritted her teeth. "I won't fall for your tricks again!" she shouted as she dashed forward, swinging her rod dangerously at the silver-haired teen. Riku easily dodged her attacks, refusing to summon his keyblade to fight. Hikari jumped back and pointed her rod at him. "Blizzard!" she shouted.

Riku jumped away, avoiding the magic. "Hikari! Listen to me, I'm not going to hurt you. I will _never_ hurt you." He said softly.

"Lies! You're just saying that because you want to take Kairi away!" The brunette narrowed her eyes as she quickly moved, swinging her rod to hit her friend. This time, Riku had no time to dodge the attack. He summoned his keyblade and blocked the attack. Their weapons clashed and Hikari wasn't going to give up anytime soon.

The silver-haired teen stared at the girl. "…you look like her, but you're not Hikari." He said as he stared into her blue eyes. "Even so, I don't want to fight you." He pulled back.

"Riku…" Hikari stared wide-eyed at the boy.

"Are you really going to believe the boy's words? He's looking down on you, child." Vexen suddenly said, reminding the brunette.

Riku turned his head to glare at the man. "Shut up." He turned his attention back to Hikari and his eyes widened when she suddenly swung her rod at him. He quickly summoned his keyblade and blocked her attack. Out of instinct, he pushed her back and slashed his keyblade across. His eyes widened in realization as he watched the young girl fell to the ground. "No!" he summoned his keyblade away and quickly went to the girl's side.

"How tragic… even after you said that you won't raise you weapon against her." Vexen stared down at Riku as he cradled Hikari's head close to his chest. He smirked when he saw the glare Riku was giving him. The man clapped his hands together. "Well done, Riku, well done. I'll give you a reward because you're one step closer." He pulled out a card and flicked his wrist, throwing the card to the boy.

Riku couldn't care less about the card that landed in front of them. "You'll pay." He glowered.

Vexen smirked before he disappeared in a portal.

The silver-haired teen turned his attention to the girl in his arms. "Don't worry Hikari… You'll be fine." For a second, he forgot that this was a part of his memories. He summoned his keyblade and placed it over the girl to cast a cure spell. "Heal—," he stopped when a hand was placed over his.

"Don't." Hikari said, opening her eyes to meet Riku's worried blue-green eyes.

"Hikari!" Riku shouted in relief. "I'm sorry. I—,"

Hikari grinned. "Don't, Riku. You don't have to apologize." She laughed a little. "What you said was right, I'm not Hikari… I'm just a figment of your memories."

"But—,"

The brunette cut him off when she handed him the card Vexen threw. "I think it would be better if you apologize to the real one instead to the one who's just a memory." She smiled.

Riku stared down at the card before he lifted his gaze up to look at the girl in his arms, only to find that she had disappeared. He held the card tighter between his fingers and stood up.

"I will."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"That's the last of them…" Hikari panted as she finished the last Unversed.

It took them longer to finish the Unversed. It almost seemed like one appeared after one died. Almost like a never-ending cycle. Hikari sat down on the ground, resting for a few minutes. She never knew that she would be so tired out after fighting a bunch of Unversed. Her blue eyes stared at the hand being offered to her. She followed the arm and gave the person a grin before taking his hand to pull herself up.

"You did great." Ventus praised.

"You too," Hikari smiled. "I hope we won't be fighting those Unversed anytime soon… I'm super exhausted!" she sighed, slumping her shoulders.

Ventus laughed, nodding his head in agreement. His laughter died down as he looked at the brunette. He opened his mouth, hesitating before deciding to go with it. "Listen Hikari… about your friend." He began.

Hikari gave the blond a small frown, but let him continue.

The blond stared into Hikari's eyes, "Maybe… it wasn't his fault. You should go talk to him and listen to his side of the story. Who knows? Maybe you two can work things out and forgive each other. Friends always forgive friends, right?" he grinned, crossing his hands behind his head.

The brunette averted her gaze to the ground.

"Ven!" the two turned their head to the source of the childish voice. Hikari's eyes were wide as plates when she saw the little girl running towards them. Ventus on the other hand, grinned and kneeled down to the girl's eye-level. The little girl excitedly rocked back and forth on the heels of her shoes. "You were so cool! You were like, zap, zap, whoosh, and them bam!" she explained with sound effects.

Ventus laughed. "Oh really?"

"Yeah! And…" the little girl trailed off when her eyes landed on the brunette staring wide eyed at her. "Huh? Did you make another friend?" she turned to face the blond.

"Oh yeah!" Ventus snapped his fingers in realization. "Hikari, meet Hikari."

"Nice to meet you!" the little girl smiled widely.

Hikari's eyes widened when she saw the mini version of her. "How—!?"

"Still talking to yourself, Hikari?"

The brunette's eyes widened as she spun around after hearing another voice. Her whole body stiffened when she saw who the person was. His silver-hair and blue-green eyes didn't change one bit. The distasteful look was still evident in his eyes. He stood a few feet away from her, his keyblade already summoned and in his grasp.

Hikari turned to look over her shoulder, only to find that both Ventus and the younger version of her had disappeared.

"You should pay more attention to your surroundings rather than talking to yourself." Riku chided in a mocking manner. He dragged the tip of his keyblade across the ground as he walked closer to the girl. Hikari turned her attention back to him and summoned her rod to prepare herself for battle. "I guess some habits can't be out grown… You still talk to your imaginary friend." He sneered.

The brunette gave him a look. "Looks like someone's head is still high up in the clouds!" she retorted, lowering herself to her fighting stance. "Don't worry, I'll help you put your head back on your shoulders!" she lunged forward.

' _Ven and little me will have to wait.'_ The brunette thought as she charged at her ex-friend.

Their weapons clashed and everything suddenly glowed white, engulfing them in light.

The scene switched back to the white room, but neither of the two paid much attention to the change. The two pulled away and continued to attack, swinging their weapons against each other. Hikari raised her rod, casting Thunder to slow Riku down, but it didn't as he easing maneuvered his way through the lightnings. He jumped up and brought his keyblade down to slash the brunette, but she was quick to raise her rod to block the what-could-be-fatal attack. The two battled with strength before they both jumped away from each other, distancing themselves.

Hikari huffed tiredly. This wasn't fair. Just right after fighting the never-ending Unversed, now she has to fight Riku too?!

"Very good!" A slow and a mocking clap echoed through the room, along with an amused laugh. Hikari eyes darted around the room, trying to find where the feminine voice came from. Her eyes quickly focused on the black portal appearing behind Riku and in front of the door to the next floor. She raised her guard. Fighting Riku alone is almost impossible, but now she has to fight another enemy plus Riku. A heavy feeling was suddenly put in her heart. She had to bear with it for the moment and try to survive. "I'm impressed, kid! I really am! You attacked him without a second thought!" a figure of a woman came out of the portal.

"Wha… you're really a girl!? I thought it was that pink dude acting as a girl!" Hikari shouted, staring at the blonde woman with her jaw dropped. "They have girls in that Organization!?"

The blonde woman laughed, "What? Never expected a woman to be evil?" she looked down at the brunette, a smirk on her face.

"…There's Maleficent, but that's not the point!" Hikari stomp her foot on the floor before turning her attention to glare at her silver-haired friend. "So now you're working for Organization XIII, huh Riku? It took you that fast to switch evil groups? How un-loyal." she mocked.

Riku clicked his tongue. "Like you'd understand anyway. Unlike you, I have my own reasons to help them." He pulled something out from his pocket and showed it to the brunette. He held the item by the strap, letting it sway left to right as he held it high. It was a star-shaped charm. "I'm not going to let you take Naminé away." He pocketed the charm back into his pocket, his eyes glaring daggers at the girl.

Hikari blinked, giving Riku a look. "Huh? What? Who's Naminé?"

The woman burst out laughing. "Oh, now that just plain mean! You've forgotten your own friend? That's mean, even for a Nobody's standard!" she continued laughing behind her hand.

Hikari remained quiet. She didn't know what they were talking about.

"Come on! Think harder! Who's the girl who your brother has a crush on?" The woman placed her hands on her hips. "The girl who you'd promised to always protect for your precious brother?"

"Kairi?" the brunette tilted her head. "Are you holding her hostage too?!" she pointed her finger accusingly at the two in front of her.

The woman narrowed her eyes, a frown on her lips. "Oh… _Oh_ … I see it now." She leaned back and reached her hand out. She flicked her wrist, throwing two cards at the younger girl who caught them. The blonde woman summoned a dark portal and frowned. "Have some fun with those cards, I'll deal with you later. I have a few words that I would like to share to our… _hostage_." Her eyes gleamed as she stepped inside the portal.

Riku turned around to follow the woman inside, but before he stepped inside, he looked over his shoulder, a cold look in his eyes. "Next time, I won't be going easy on you." He said and he stepped inside the portal, disappearing.

Hikari sighed, summoning away her rod. She raised the cards to take a better look before she looked back at the door behind her, the door that once lead her to Dwarf Woodlands. There were still many questions going through her head and she wanted answers. She raised her hand to place her fingers on her temple, a frown on her lips.

"What… did really happen when I was a kid?"

* * *

A/n: I know, I know… You all have a lot of questions about why didn't Mickey and older Hikari meet? Why is there no Mickey here, but in Little Adventure there is? I promise that as the story progressed, it will all be explained.

So, at the meantime, what do you guys think of the story?


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading, the reviews, favs and alerts! You guys are the best!

Lulu9814: thank you so much!

Guest: Awww thank you so much! I still haven't completed DDD yet haha. Bad Vexen, Bad! Haha he is a pretty flower boy lol

BlueXRedKnight: maybe she'll consider it haha

c-guest: I hate Repliku too! (I can't get pass him in COM TTwTT)

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 5  
The world before

* * *

"Back already, Vexen?" Axel asked, staring at the blond man who walked inside the room through a portal. The red head noted the excited glint in the scientist's green eyes. The smirk across the man's lips also helped him figure out that the man was delighted by something he came across before going back to the top floor. "You seemed… different. I find it disturbing to see you smile. Did something happen?" he smirked when he saw the change of expressions.

Vexen turned to face Axel, his face now twisted in a scowl. "How dare you say that to me!" he shouted and Axel gave a shrug, simply dismissing the man. The blond man frowned deeply as he watched the younger member of the Organization push himself off the wall and walked closer to him, his arms crossed. "You're lucky that I'm in a pleasant mood at the moment."

Axel blinked. " _'Vexen'_ and the words _'pleasant mood'_ in the same sentence… Never thought I'd heard it." The scientist was rarely pleased with anything. To see him being intrigued by something other than Sora, Riku, Riku's copy and Naminé kind of made the red-head a little curious. "So, mind sharing what you have in mind?" He asked.

The older Organization member let out a huff, a frown on his face. "I'll let it slide just for this time." His eyes glanced over to the girl sitting on the chair at the other side of the room, silently staring at her sketchbook. He took a few steps forward, turning his back on the red-head. "It seems there has been a massive development with Riku when he knew of Hikari being in the castle." He said, watching as Naminé's shoulder tensed.

Axel also noticed the way Naminé stiffened, but decided not to voice it. "And? This concerns us why? All we need is Sora and Hikari to overthrow the Organization." He uncrossed his arms, his emerald-green eyes staring at Vexen's head with a frown on his lips. It was always about Riku with the mad scientist and now after he mentioned of Sora's little sister having an important role in Riku's heart, he knew where this will lead. "Oh, _come on_ , Vexen. You're not thinking of making another copy, now are you? We already have one, we don't need another. This place is getting over-crowded with children…" He shook his head, placing his hand on his temple.

Vexen snorted. "That is a very tempting idea, yes, but I don't want any more children disrespecting an elder." He heard Axel snort in laughter. He gave an annoyed look before shaking the red-head away. He had more important things to do than idle and chat with the snarky young man.

"So, what's the plan?" Axel's eyes followed Vexen's form as he came closer to the young Nobody.

The blond man stopped, standing a few feet from Naminé. "I was thinking about using Naminé's power to reconstruct Riku Replica's memories of Hikari." His green eyes stared down as the blonde girl as if she was some sort of science project. "The recent data that I've collected shows that the boy cares for the girl more than before." He continued.

"But the fact is that Hikari hate his guts." Axel butted in, stating the obvious. It was clear that it's not going to be easy to change the stubborn girl's feelings toward her friend so easily. From what Marluxia told him about Hikari when he first met her in Hollow Bastion, he was surprised to find out that the girl was not as forgiving as her brother. "How in the world are we gonna make her stop hating Riku when she won't even talk about him? It's easier if we just use Sora and Naminé."

Vexen hummed in reply. "A simple show of regret is enough." He needed to make sure that the basement group has their hands on both Riku and Hikari to overthrow the upper group. If he can insert new data of Riku's feelings towards Hikari to Riku Replica, the girl might have a change of heart about her friend and will follow him. It might seem like he was helping the upper group's achievement to use the Replica to fool Hikari into helping them, but in reality, he was doing it for himself. "The way how he regrets his actions and how he wants nothing but to protect her is almost… _touching_. I'm certain that it will convince her." he smirked.

Axel sighed, turning his head to Naminé. "Well, looks like you got another work cut out for you. Try you best, hmm?"

"Make that two." Larxene stride in the room, leaving the dark portal behind her open for the Replica. The sinister and gleeful look on her face before she left the room was gone. It was replaced with a deep scowl, followed by a glare.

The red-head arched an eyebrow up. "Again. Back so soon, Larxene? I thought you were the type to play with your food. Let me guess… You're disappointed that you already broke the poor girl?" he asked.

Larxene snapped her head at Axel direction. "Sadly, the food is still raw. There's no fun if it's not done." She said, her bright eyes seemed to light up in annoyance and anger.

The red-haired man blinked confusedly. "Raw?" he echoed. It was supposed to be him to meet the girl next, but Larxene insisted that she was the one who will be next to give the cards to Hikari. Being the man with patience, he let her. He could wait a couple of floors before meeting the girl. Now, if he was the one who encountered Hikari next, he would've known what 'raw' meant. He connected the dots and his eyes widened for a second. "By raw… do you mean…?" he trailed off, turning his head back to look at Naminé.

Larxene walked passed by the two man, the heels of her boots clicking against the floor. "Why is that brat still thinking about Kairi when she should be thinking of you?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Don't tell me that you've forgotten to shape the girl's memories." She scowled and raised her hand.

In a flash, her throwing-knives were seen between her fingers, threatening to use it if Naminé didn't answer her question correctly.

Naminé stared at her sketchbook, biting her bottom lip. "It… takes time to meddle with one's memories…" she said quietly.

"And it only took you a few hours to do so to that puppet over there." Larxene snapped, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder to where Riku Replica stood. "So, tell me the truth, you little witch. Did you or did you _not_ do it?"

"Don't talk to Naminé like that!" Riku Replica shouted as he ran towards the two. He stood between Naminé and Larxene, his eyes glaring daggers at the older woman.

Larxene grabbed Riku Replica by the collar of his shirt, "This is between us and her, so don't get in the way!" she roughly pushed him back, making the boy stagger but he quickly recovered.

"That's enough, Larxene." Axel cuts in, walking closer to the three. "What Naminé said is right. It takes time to fully rearrange someone's memories. It took her awhile to get Sora to think that she's the special person in his heart, isn't that right, Naminé?" he defended, a smirk playing on his lips.

Larxene clicked her tongue.

Naminé lowered her head and gave a nod.

"Hmph! Well either way, you better get to work!" Larxene spun around in her heels, walking away. She summoned a portal, but before she stepped in, she turned her head to look over her shoulder, her gaze piercing through the frail blonde girl. "Otherwise, well, you know what will happen." She said lastly as sparks of lightning appeared before stepping in.

Riku Replica turned to Naminé and gave the girl a smile. "Don't worry about her, Naminé. Once I finished Sora and Hikari, along with that fake, I'll take you as far as possible from that woman and this psychotic organization." His eyes narrowed at both Axel and Vexen.

Axel raised his eyebrow, but didn't say anything as the replica left the room. The redhead turned to the scientist, "Honestly, you can't make a clone that's obedient?"

Vexen huffed, crossing his arms. "Now how would he be the perfect Riku if he doesn't act like one?" He said, giving Axel a frown. He turned back to face Naminé, who refused to look at anyone in the room. "I trust that you will do your job with the Replica well, Naminé."

"…yes."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"I hope you find what you're looking for, Cloud."

"…thanks."

Hikari grinned, watching Cloud's back as he walked away. The brunette was glad that she met the young man again in her memories. She kind of missed his sassy and sarcastic attitude. The Cloud in Olympus Coliseum was a such a smug and a downer compared to the Cloud she knew now, though both are still very moody.

The brunette frowned when a thought came to mind. Did everyone back in the committee miss her? How long has she been away? She can't tell how much time had passed since she arrived at Castle Oblivion. There were no windows or clocks to tell the time. She didn't feel sleepy at all. She kept on going through the doors of the castle with the cards given to her by that woman. But now, she used up both cards and none were left for her to continue. She wondered if anyone from that Organization XIII will approach her again and give her more cards to continue.

The last two worlds she visited were normal, well if you could call Wonderland normal… but everything went just the way as she remembers. No Ventus, no mini her, or anyone who Ventus dubbed as the Masked Boy. It kind of makes her think that the Organization is playing tricks on her. That or she had magically traveled to the world when she was younger, met Ventus, and came back just as magically as she traveled. If that did happen, then why can't she remember anything about it? Surely if she traveled to another world she would've remembered, even if she was just a kid back then.

"Aw c'mon, kid! Don't be so down! You did great out there!" the voice of Phil's encouragement broke her trail of thoughts. The brunette let out a loud grunt when the satyr gave a slap to her back, almost falling over. "You'll get that prick next time. With my training, you'll be sure to win." He smiled, placing his hands on his hips.

Hikari laughed, turning her head to face the satyr. "Yeah, but I think I'll have to hold up your offer." She said, replying the conversation between Phil and herself they had a few months ago.

Phil nodded his head in understanding. "I gotcha. You have to look for your missing brother." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. Just like before, he guided the brunette out from the arena and the coliseum. He stood by the doors as Hikari stood in front of him. "But you're always welcome to come back and train anytime. I'm the guy who can make any talents you have bloom. Just look at Hercules. He was so puny back then and now he's a hero." He laughed.

"Got it. Thanks Phil." Hikari grinned as she waved goodbye to the satyr. She walked down the small set of stairs, her hands crossed behind her head as she tried to recall what happened next in her memories. She moved her hands to her sides when a dark portal suddenly appeared. Her left eye twitched when she saw a familiar blue-flaming death god appeared. _'Oh yeah…'_ she frowned.

"That was a nice show that you put up!"

Hikari gave the blue man a look before walking pass by him, completely ignoring him. _'Nope. Nu-uh. Not falling for that again.'_ She blocked out the sounds Hades was making as she continued her way out of the coliseum.

"Seriously?! You don't want to see your friend? And here I thought you were looking for him." Hades said as he crossed his arms, eyeing the girl with a frown. "The Underworld is a very nice place to begin looking." He grinned, trying to persuade the girl to come to the dark world.

The brunette paused, turning to look over her shoulder. "Not interested." If this wasn't a situation that she found irritating, she would laugh her butt off for using one of Cloud's quotes. And if the real Cloud was here, he would've slap the back of her head for it. "It happened once, not happening again. Nope!" she continued to walk away.

"Now you just sound like that spiky haired ingrate!" Hades turned red, creating flames around him. "Bah! Whatever! I don't need stuck up snobs like you."

"Good riddance…" Hikari said under her breath when she heard Hades' angry rants fade into the distance as he went back to the underworld. She sighed before she continued to walk towards the entrance gates, planning to go back to the castle through the door. She placed her hand on the door, staring at her hand before she decided to give a little push. "Wonder what world is next…"

"Aren't you going to say _'hi'_ to me first before leaving?"

Hikari quickly turned around, her eyes wide and her lips parted in surprise. Standing a few feet from her is a familiar looking silver-haired teen with his arms open wide.

The brunette stared oddly at her friend. _'What's… going on here? What happened to Riku?'_ she frowned. A few floors before, they were on each other's throats, but now… he was being friendly again! She never knew that Riku had mood swings. He was always cool and level-headed, when she met him in the Underworld—. The girl mentally face-palmed. _'Of course… This is a part of my memory before Riku gone all evil…'_ she stared at her friend with a frown.

"What's wrong? Don't want to give me a hug?" Riku asked, a smile plastered on his lips. "Don't leave me hanging, Hikari! My arms are getting tired, you know?" he laughed.

Hikari gingerly took a step forward, hesitating for a moment. She walked down the steps to give the taller boy a hug. When she was closed enough, the teen pulled her in, surprising her with the gesture. He wrapped his arms around her, patting her head. It was more genuine and warm than what she remembered.

' _This is so awkward…'_ Hikari thought as she raised her arms to return his hug. She thought back to the conversation she had with Kairi. She remembered saying that everything will be the same, better even. But in reality, everything was far worse than she had thought. _'Even if this is the Riku before he turned evil, I guess things between us won't be the same after all…'_

They both pulled apart.

Riku noticed the look across Hikari's face. "What's wrong? Something bothering you?"

Hikari quickly shook her head. "Nothing, nothing! Just… awkward I guess." She said truthfully, her eyes staring at the ground. She felt an increase of weight on top of her head. She glanced up, her eyes meeting with a pair of blue-green eyes.

The silver-haired teen ruffled the brunette's hair, giving a short laugh. "I guess it's natural to feel that way when talking to a memory." He said.

Hikari's blue eyes widened, taking a step back. "Wait! You knew about this whole thing?!" she almost chocked on her own saliva when she shouted in complete surprise. Everyone, and she means everyone she met again in her memories didn't say anything and just go with the flow, with an exception of Aerith, of course. She sighed deeply, calming herself down before deciding to ask him. "So, then, if you know about this… do you know what's going on with me and the real Riku?"

Riku nodded his head.

The brunette lowered her head. "Just before… we were on each other's throats… and now we're having a conversation without us trying to hurt each other…" she said, voicing out her thought to her memory of Riku. If he's the nicer version of her memory of Riku, might as well ask him for as advice, even if he's only a memory. It's better than asking the evil version of her memory of him, right? She placed a hand over her heart, glancing up look at the boy. "I… don't know how I should feel about you or the real one…" she admitted.

The older teen closed his eyes. "What I did was wrong and I'm sorry…" he walked passed the girl, his back facing her. He stared at the entrance to the coliseum as he balled up his hands into fists. The girl stared at his back, waiting for him to continue. A few seconds passed and he finally turned sideways, glancing over his shoulder to look at her with a smile. "But this is just me saying what you probably want me to say, right?" he asked.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Huh?"

"I'm just a fragment of your memories, Hikari. I'm not the real Riku." The silver-haired teen turned around to face his friend fully. "You still care about him, but your heart is clouded with doubt. What would you do if you see Riku again? Would you forgive him if he said the exact same thing as I did?" he asked.

Hikari gripped her shirt, staring down at her hand. "I don't know… I… don't know…" she repeated, her voice getting smaller.

Riku smiled, "Perhaps you'll make up your mind when you see him again."

The brunette snorted. "Yeah… if he doesn't kill me first…" she rubbed the back of her neck as she kicked the ground with the heel of her shoe. "I don't remember fighting him after I met Ven in Snow White's world though." She crossed her arms, closing her eyes.

"Ven?" Riku repeated.

"It's nothing… Probably some random guy. That Organization is probably tricking me with their games. I don't think I ever met him when I was little." Hikari said, a smile on her lips.

The silver-haired teen gave her a sad look. "You _have_ met him. You just forgot."

"…I did?" Hikari placed a hand on the side of her head.

"You have to get out of here, Hikari… before _they_ get you." Riku said seriously. He took a few steps closer, the frown still plastered on his lips. His brows were furrowed down, a serious look on his face. He placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Stay as far as you can from Organization XIII—,"

"Get your hands off her!"

The two quickly turned around, facing the voice.

Hikari's jaw dropped. "Huh? Two Rikus?!" her eyes darted from the Riku beside her to the one standing a few feet in front of them. Her eyes kept on looking between the doubles. Same hair, same face, same clothes… not to mention the same attitude! "Wait… I thought there was supposed to be only one in my memories. I didn't know you could multiply."

"This is no time to be joking, Hikari." Riku summoned his keyblade, raising it above his head, going into the same position as the other. Hikari followed his action, summoning her own rod into hand. They both faced the other Riku who was glaring at his own self. "Don't believe anything he says, Hikari." He warned.

The other Riku clicked his tongue. "Hikari, you shouldn't listen to him. He might be part of your memory, but the Organization is messing with your memories."

Hikari furrowed her eyebrows. "My memories?" she glanced over to the Riku beside her and then to the one across. "I feel like my brain's about to explode… I'll be honest… which one is the real one?"

"Me." The Riku from across them answered.

"Neither. The real one's not here, but he's coming soon." The Riku from beside her answered, making the girl spluttered in surprise. That was the most honest answer she ever heard. Really. The silver haired teen tightened his grip around the handle of his keyblade. "I'll hold him off. Go to the next floor." her straightened his back.

The brunette looked over to the door. "But If I go through… then that means this part of my memory is over. What would happen to the fake or you?" she asked.

Riku smirked. "You don't have to worry about that." He replied. "Now go!" he shouted as he dashed forward.

Hikari watched as the two Rikus clashed their keyblades in an X, trying to hold each other off. She wanted to help the Riku from her memories to take out the fake, but it was difficult to tell which one is which after they began to circle around, switching places. She was scared that she might hit the memory Riku rather than the fake one. She glanced over to the door, hesitating to run away. After a few seconds, she finally made up her mind.

Right foot forward, left foot forward. She ran towards the door.

When she reached the door, she heard Riku called her. "Hikari, wait!"

Said brunette turned her head to look at the silver-haired teen who was battling himself. Their eyes met before the other Riku threw another attack to keep the fake busy. Hikari turned her attention back to the door before pushing it open.

She went through the door, a single thought in mind.

' _I don't even know what's real or not anymore…'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari sighed deeply when the door behind her closed.

She glanced over her shoulder, staring at the white doors. She thought hard about what both Memory Riku and Ven had told her, but there was just a nagging feeling in her heart that she couldn't do it just yet. She couldn't forgive what Riku did to Sora. Before, her feelings were neutral about him, but after learning Sora didn't come back after defeating Ansem… she was convinced that it was his fault. That he was to blame for Sora's disappearance.

"Fascinating…" A voice startled her. She quickly spun around on her heels to face the mysterious voice. She was certain that it wasn't that crazy lady or that flower boy or that creepy one from Hollow Bastion. It was someone new. She summoned her rod to hand when her eyes landed to the figure cloaked in black sticking out like a sore thumb in the room of white. His hair long and his eyes bright, the glint in his eyes reminded her of a crazy scientist. "So, you just left your friend alone to fend for himself?" he asked in an amused tone.

"He can handle himself. Literally." Hikari snorted, rolling her eyes before focusing on the man standing a few feet in front of her. "Out with it. You're here to give me more cards, right?"

The man's eyes widened in anger. "Such an imprudent child! Speaking like that to an elder!" his face twisted up in a scowl as he balled up his hands.

"Never heard that one. So, I guess that's a new one to describe me." Hikari's lips twitched up in a small smirk as she watched the man getting all angry at her. She didn't even do anything and this man was already on the verge of exploding. "Can we just skip to the part where you'll be giving me more cards? I want to find my brother and get out of this castle as fast as possible." She said, an annoyed look across her face.

"Such ignorance." The man glared. "And here I thought you would be delighted to see the people from your past."

"I can visit my friends anytime I want. I don't need to go through this castle to see them again." Hikari summoned her rod away, thinking that it wasn't needed to deal with this man. She walked towards him and simply walked passed him to the next door, ignoring how the man kept on sending her looks that could kill. _'Maybe if I just go through the doors without those cards… I can move up faster…'_ she thought as she placed her hand on the door.

All of a sudden, a burst of ice appeared right on the door, the spikes from the ice almost touching her nose. The brunette turned around, summoning her rod into hand as she glared at the man. She lowered herself to a defensive stance, ready to block any more incoming ice attacks. The man smirked when he saw the look across Hikari's face. He lowered his blue shield.

"Perhaps it will be a good idea to listen to what an elder has to say." The man said, smirking.

Hikari furrowed her eyebrows. "Spill it, old man."

The man snorted. "From a time, long before the world became Hollow Bastion, you were present with that special boy." He said.

The brunette frowned. "Special boy?" she echoed.

"Though, I am more curious on how you reached the world instead than being with that boy." The man hummed, placing a hand on his chin. "Perhaps he was the one responsible…" he said to himself.

"Wait… We've… met before?" Hikari asked and the man smirked. The girl shook her head, shaking away the thoughts before she lowered herself to a fighting stance. "It's a good thing I forgot then! I don't want to remember a creep like you!" she shouted.

The man growled. "Have it your way!"

Just when Hikari ran down the steps to fight the man, something came in between them. The brunette instantly stopped and turned her head to the right, following where the weapon went. Her eyes narrowed when she found yet another of the Organization member. This time, a redhead. His tall posture and smirk made her more impatient. She doesn't have time to deal with the growing numbers in the Organization. She had to go to the top and see if Sora is really in the castle or not. But she can't help but feel, that she has met this man somewhere.

"Well, you both certainly got off on the wrong foot." The redhead grinned as he held his weapon over his shoulder. His emerald eyes darted over from his colleague to the girl glaring at him. He stared at her for a good five seconds before he averted his gaze to the man, simply dismissing the girl as not a threat. "What are you doing here anyway, Vexen?" he asked, turning to face him.

Hikari gave the redhead a dirty look. _'Did he just ignored me?'_

The man, now Vexen, simply gave the redhead the stink eye. "I'm a scientist. Experiment is what I do, yes." He replied.

Hikari turned to face Vexen, giving him a dirty look too. "This place is a freak show…" she mumbled under her breath before turning around to the door to the next floor. "I guess I'm bothering your business, so I'll just be on my way." She pointed her finger to the door as she began to walk.

The redhead threw his Chakram at her, stopping her advancing forward. Hikari quickly summoned her rod, turning to face the redhead with a glare. The Chakram spun back to his hand and he flashed her a smirk.

"Oh, don't worry, you're not forgotten, Hikari." The redhead tutted, wiggling his finger in a 'no'. "I'll deal with you when I'm done talking with Vexen, hmm?" he said.

Hikari clicked her tongue.

The redhead gave a satisfied smirk before turning to face Vexen. "Like I said, what are you doing here? Other than experimenting, of course."

"None of your concern." Vexen replied.

The redhead laughed. "What an acceptable reason." He raised his free hand and held it out to Vexen. "This isn't your floor, Vexen. The three of us are in charge of the things going around here."

Vexen flinched before clicking his tongue. " _Of course_." He spat. The man picked something up from his pocket and with a flick of his wrist, he threw the cards at the redhead who caught it with ease. "Have fun with this insolent brat." He summoned a dark portal and went through it leaving the two behind.

Hikari gave an annoyed look. "Creep." She murmured under her breath.

The redhead stared at the card before turning around to face the girl. "I'm guessing that you want this to be quick?" he asked and the look Hikari gave him answered his question. He chuckled, ducking his head down. "Okay, okay, since you're a girl, I think I'll spare the fight. You just have to answer this single question."

"I took offense to that." Hikari said, clearly not happy at the fact that this guy won't fight her just because she's a girl. Sure, it will safe her all the time, but now she just wants to wipe the floor with his spiky hair. "Shoot. What riddle do you want me to answer?" She huffed out.

"Impatient, now are we?" The redhead grinned. "Now…"

"What's my name?"

Hikari blinked. "What?"

"My name. Do I need to spell out the question for you? W-h-a-t i-s m-y—,"

"I know what the question means!" Hikari interrupted the man. "It's just… _what_? How am I supposed to know? I don't even know you!"

The redhead sighed. "Talk about being forgetful…" he shook his head and summoned his Chakram away. He rubbed his temple and took a few steps closer, stopping a few feet away from where the brunette stood. He showed the cards to Hikari, who kept her eyes on the set of cards in his hand. He picked one from the set and threw it at her. "Maybe this will help you remember." He said.

Hikari caught the card and stared at it with a confused look. The castle looked familiar, but she can't put her finger on it.

"I'll save these for later." The redhead said, pocketing the rest of the cards. "For the meantime, enjoy your visit while it lasts, kid."

The brunette lifted her gaze up. "So, you knew what happened to me in this world then?"

The redhead shrugged. "Nope. It's not my memory. What happens to you depend on you. We can step in, but we can't see what you see, kiddo."

"Glad to know that I still have some privacy." Hikari retorted.

"I like that sass, let's see if you can keep it up." The redhead laughed.

Hikari stared at him before turning to face the door, holding the card.

"Hey kid."

The brunette turned around.

The redhead smirked, raising his finger up to his temple. He tapped his temple twice.

"The name's Axel. Got it memorized?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Where am I now?"

Hikari glanced around. Grass and flowers decorated the town square. The design of the buildings around her looked a little outdated compared to the more modern ones in Destiny Islands, but it was beautiful in its own way. The soft colors of the buildings matched with the colored stoned path. The brunette glanced down to the stoned path and tapped it with the heel of her shoe. She looked around again, finding a fountain not far from her. In a distance, a large castle was seen. The place she arrived at was quiet, a little too quiet.

"A castle?" Hikari stared at the castle. It was clearly the same as the one printed on the card. She thought back to her conversation with Axel and that Vexen guy. She hummed, placing a hand on her chin and the other on her hip. "Didn't that Vexen guy said that we've met before?" she mumbled to herself.

"From a time… long before the world turned to Hollow Bastion…" The brunette repeated, trying to remember what Vexen had said to her. Her eyes widened when she realized the connection. "Wait! So, this _was_ Hollow Bastion?!" she screamed, turning around to look at her surroundings.

It was so different. The place looked so radiant and warm. Sure, she felt the same vibe she gets from Hollow Bastion and this one, but it was still strange knowing that Hollow Bastion wasn't as hollow as now. The brunette glanced back to the castle, trying to find the similarities. It certainly looked friendlier that's for sure. But the structure does look the same.

"No wonder everyone tried their best to restore Hollow Bastion…" A smile appeared on her lips as her thoughts wondered to her friends back in Hollow Bastion. At first, she didn't understand why they were so persistent on rebuilding the world. She just thought that it was their responsiblity as the residents. But now... she realized. They were doing it not only because of that reason. Home. This is their home. A cool breeze blew past her and she glanced down to the look at the flowers. She bends down and rubbed the petal with her fingers, feeling the soft texture. "It was so nice… Maleficent really messed it up…" she sighed as she stood up, her eyes locked on the castle.

Unaware to her, the same monsters from Dwarfs Woodlands came back to ambush her.

"Look out!"

By the time Hikari turned around, a blur of blue was seen from the corner of her eyes. Judging from the voice, she could tell that it was a woman. The mysterious woman practically threw herself at her. The woman pushed the brunette away along with herself to safety as the large Unversed lands down on the spot where the brunette had stood. A second too late and she'll become flatter than a pancake.

The mysterious blue woman wrapped her arms around Hikari's body, shielding the younger girl from the impact. The two landed on the stoned path, a few feet away from the Unversed.

The woman sat up, checking Hikari for injuries. "Are you okay?" she kindly asked.

Hikari held her head as she pushed herself to a sitting position. "Yeah…" she grunted in reply, rubbing the side of her head.

The woman sighed in relief before turning to face the Unversed. "Please find a safe place to hide." She said, taking a few steps forward. Hikari stared at the woman's back confusedly as she tried to figure out what the woman was trying to do. In a flash, a blue metallic keyblade appeared in her right hand, shocking the young girl. "I'll deal with them." She continued.

' _Another keyblade! Just like Ven!'_ Hikari thought, staring at the keyblade with wide eyes. She shook her head, shaking her thoughts away. She pushed herself up and stood beside the woman. She summoned her rod and glared at the group of Unversed. "I don't want to run, I want to fight!" she shouted, lowering herself to a fighting stance. "Besides, I don't appreciate being almost squished!" she huffed out.

The blue-haired woman stared at the younger girl. She was surprised that the girl could summon a weapon and face the Unversed with courage. Her eyes looked over to the determined look on the brunette's face and she couldn't help but smile. It reminded her of a certain determined blond boy.

"Alright, but stay close to me."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I'm back! Haha so sorry for not updating in a while… had been in a pretty hectic month haha

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and please check out the prequel, Little Adventure in my DA account! 😃 it will explain so much more about the sequels

Thank you so much for everyone who has faved, followed, read and reviewed this story! You guys are the best!

c-guest: Lol! Me too! I would be confused as heck! She is too! She is my most favorite female character of all time :D though I love each and every character, but she is the top one!

Ellen Mira mathers: Thank you so much! I feel really happy that someone loves my stories :D I think it's a great idea, but there might be some grammar error with my stories or spelling errors haha

BlueXRedKnight: let's see in this chapter ;)

Guest: thank you so much! They would get along so well with their sarcastic and sassy attitude lol! Maybe I'll write something about Sora's part of the story *wink wink*

Lulu9814: Here's the next chapter :D

* * *

Chapter 6  
Childhood

* * *

Hikari side-stepped to avoid an incoming attack. She raised her rod and strike the Unversed down. She panted, taking a few seconds of break before continuing. The brunette glance over to look at the blue-haired woman. The woman was certainly doing better than her. She was taking out the Unversed like she was dancing. Literally. Her attacks were the combination of what looks like ballet and magic.

 _'Amazing, really…'_ Hikari thought as she turned her head to face the Unversed, just in time to see one lunging at her. She blocked the attack, pushing the Unversed back before swinging her rod at it. She furrowed her eyebrows, narrowing her eyes at the remaining Unversed. She pointed her rod at the group of Unversed and casted Blizzard a few times. "Freeze!" she shouted.

As soon as the spell hit the Unversed, they were covered in layers of ice, stopping them from moving. She exchanged looks with the blue-haired woman and she nodded. The blue-haired woman moved first, dashing towards the group of frozen Unversed. All of a sudden, a few Unversed jumped from the ground. The woman quickly raised her keyblade, swinging it at the blue creatures.

"Now!" the woman shouted as she turned back and offered her hand to the younger girl behind her. Hikari nodded and grabbed her hand in a firm grip. The woman threw the brunette at the direction of the frozen Unversed before she continues to take out the few Unversed that just appeared.

Just when the magic wore off and the Unversed broke free from the ice, Hikari quickly cast Fira at them, taking the monsters out with flames. "Got 'em!" she grinned as she landed on the ground, skidding to a stop.

"You certainly did." The blue-haired woman smiled as she walked closer. She summoned her keyblade away as Hikari did the same with her rod. "My name's Aqua, and you are?" she introduced, offering her hand to the younger girl.

"The name's Hikari! Nice to meet you, Aqua!" Hikari grinned as she shook the older woman's hand. "And thanks for before… If it wasn't for you, I would've been flatter than a pancake!" she rubbed the back of her neck, giving a sheepish look.

Aqua gave a short laugh behind her hand, "No problem. Perhaps next time, you should be more aware of your surroundings with those monsters around." She advised.

Hikari nodded her head. "Yeah, I'll try to do that." She looked down to the ground. She noticed the resemblance between what the woman and Ventus wore. Maybe the two of them are family or friends. If what Memory Riku told her is true, that Ventus is real, does that mean Aqua is real too? She placed her right hand on her chin and left hand on her hip, giving a thinking pose. "Hmmm…" she hummed as she began to think of an answer.

Aqua tilted her head. "Is something wrong?" she asked in concern.

The brunette sighed, shaking her head. "Nah… just thinking…" she lifted her chin up to give the older woman a reassuring smile.

"A penny for your thoughts?" Aqua asked.

"Well…" Hikari trailed off as she turned to look at the castle. "Can I ask you something? Are you like Riku? Do you know what's going on around here? If so, can you please tell me? Because I have absolutely no idea what's going on." She admitted, turning back to look at the woman.

Aqua chuckled and Hikari pouted. "Sorry… It's just that you remind me a lot of someone I know." She continued before taking a step closer to the shorter girl.

"Listen, Hikari," Aqua placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. Hikari glanced over to the hand on her shoulder before averting her gaze to look into the woman's eyes. "I know it's a lot to take in, but you just have to believe that we exist in your heart." The woman continued as she placed her hand over her heart.

Hikari looked down and placed her hand over her heart. "So, I really do know you and I forgot?" she lifted her chin up, giving a sad look. Now she felt really, really bad about forgetting Ventus and Aqua.

"Don't feel bad. It's not your fault." Aqua ruffled the brunette's hair. "You might not remember us now, but you will soon. I can promise you that."

Hikari grinned. "I hope so— Aqua?" not a second later, her grin was replaced with a confused frown. In a blink of an eye, Aqua disappeared, leaving her alone in the town. She looked around the place, trying to find the woman. She scratched the back of her head, remembering how Aerith disappeared just like how Aqua did after having an important conversation with her. "This is just like what happened between me and Aerith…" she mumbled.

The brunette sighed. _'I hope what you said was right, Aqua… You guys seemed to be someone important to me. I want to know more of you guys.'_ She smiled as she raised her head to look at the castle. She glanced down when she felt someone walked passed right beside her. She raised an eyebrow as she stared at the well-dressed duck casually strolling through the empty town. She squinted her eyes to get a better look at the duck before her jaw dropped. "MR. SCROOGE?!" She shouted as she pointed her finger at the duck.

"Aye. That's me name alright." Said duck turned to look at the loud brunette. Hikari quickly ran over towards the duck, staring at him with a disbelief look. "Do ye need anythin' from me, lass?" Scrooge asked, a hand behind his back.

"Actually—!" Hikari quickly noticed something was wrong when a large shadow loomed over them. She quickly summoned her rod and stood right in front of Scrooge. "You again?!" she shouted in complaint.

Hikari along Scrooge backed away when the large Unversed kept on moving forward towards them.

"Ach! How dare ye!? Back off, ye fiend! You'll not be getting my money!" Scrooge yelled as he waved his walking stick angrily at the Unversed.

"I'm not sure if it's actually money they want, Mr. Scrooge." Hikari said as she finally stopped backing away. She lowered herself to a fighting stance, readying herself for another battle against the Unversed. "Alright then! You want another round? Let's do this!" she shouted, twirling her rod in her hand.

"Look out!"

Hikari's eyes widened when she saw a keyblade hit the monster's head. She glanced over to where the keyblade had returned and her eyes made contact with the boy she met a few floors below. The brunette quickly shook the thoughts away when she noticed movements from the Unversed in front of her. The monster quickly retreated, floating towards the opposite side of the town. Without thinking twice, she quickly followed after the Unversed, knowing that Ventus would be following right behind her.

"Now wait just a minute," Hikari skidded to a stop when she heard Scrooge called out to her. She quickly turned around to face the duck, but she was faced with more than just one people she knew. Her eyes were completely wide when she saw not only Ventus' back, but also her mini self. "Don't I get a chance to repay ye youngsters?" her chuckled.

"Oh, you don't have to." Ventus replied as he turned around.

"Just hold yer horses. I didn't mean me fortune." Scrooge said as he placed his hand on his hip. Hikari walked closer to Ventus and the mini version of her, her whole attention on the younger version of herself. Ventus glanced over to Hikari who in return gave a shrug before they both waited for Scrooge to continue. "Maybe a wee bit of gold or a small token of…"

"Ummm, well, could you make it fast?" Ventus gave a concerned look, as he glanced back to where the Unversed went.

"We really don't want to lose that thing." Hikari agreed, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder.

Scrooge took off his hat. "I know! I've just got the thin' in me hat! Come closer so I can tell ye me secrets!" he motioned his hand for the trio to come closer to him.

"Secrets!? I can keep a secret!" the younger version of Hikari replied as she happily skipped to the duck.

Hikari held the urge to ask questions to her younger self. It was just wasn't the right time to ask. Both Ventus and Hikari followed after the young child. Hikari kneeled down as Ventus bends down to listen to what Scrooge has to tell to them.

"Ye youngsters can tell me. You all came here from another world, didn't ye?" Scrooge said, making both Ventus and Hikari stare at each other before staring back at the duck with wide eyes. Little Hikari on the other hand seemed to be amazed when Scrooge knew. "Dinna worry. Me bill is sealed. Yer secret' s safe with me. Tis the same for me. I asked a wizard named Merlin to bring me here from another world." He chuckled.

Hikari grinned. "Kinda obvious that you're from another world…"

"Aye."

Ventus stood back to his full height. "Great! Is that all?" he gave an uneasy smile.

"Eh, I'm holdin' ye up. Here. These are lifetime passes to Disney Town." Scrooge pulled something up from his hand and showed it to the trio. Hikari stared at the card in his hand and her eyes widened when she recognized the card. It was the same card he showed her in Hollow Bastion! He slides the card, revealing three more beneath it. He gave one to Little Hikari and the rest to Ventus. "As for ye, ye have a special pass!" he laughed as he pulled out another card from his hat.

Hikari took the card with wide eyes. "This is…" the card she got was different from Ventus and Little Hikari. It was blue in color and shaped like a crown, with a picture of Disney Palace and Disney Town printed on the front. She wondered how a memory version of Scrooge could get his hands on of one the cards the Organization members has. She tried to get cards from that creepy blond guy, but all she got was a new horrible nickname for her. "How did you get it?" she asked, staring at Scrooge.

Scrooge laughed, giving a wink. "Tis a secret!" he whispered at the brunette before turning to everyone. "Ye'll have buckets o' fun there! Tis fun for the whole family!" he said.

"Whoa! Thanks!" Little Hikari thanked as she stared at her ticket.

Hikari nodded her head in agreement as she pocketed her card.

"Sir, can I ask a favor?" Ventus suddenly said. "Please take care of Hikari until I get back." He lightly pushed Little Hikari to the duck.

Scrooge nodded. "Aye. Will do, lad."

"Eh!? You're just gonna leave me here?" Little Hikari complained.

The blond smiled. "We have to take care of that monster. So, be good and we'll have some fun later, okay?" he ruffled the little girl's hair.

"Fine…" Little Hikari huffed out.

"Let's go." Ventus turned his head to Hikari and sprinted towards the direction where the Unversed went.

Hikari glanced over to Ventus before turning her head to Scrooge and Little Hikari. The taller brunette quickly kneeled down before the two of them and gave a smile. "There's just so much I wanna ask the two of you…but…" she trailed off, looking back to Ventus who was waiting for her.

Little Hikari grinned. "Don't worry. You can always ask yourself." she pointed her little finger at Hikari's heart and then placed her hands over her chest. "I won't be going anywhere 'cause you're me and I'm you! You'll remember everything soon!" she giggled.

Scrooge nodded. "That's right."

Hikari looked at Scrooge and then to Little Hikari, laughing. "It's kinda sad that my younger self seemed to have more faith than me." She ruffled Little Hikari's hair, giving a smile. "Thanks." She said before joining Ventus.

"So… How was your talk with yourself?" Ventus asked as the two began chasing the Unversed.

Hikari almost tripped over, but quickly recovered. "You _knew_? I thought you didn't…"

Ventus laughed. "Kinda hard to miss the difference." He gave her a look as if saying 'do you think I'm that stupid to not notice'.

"Why didn't you say anything sooner? I would've _tried_ to remember." Hikari huffed, glaring at the blond.

"It's kinda useless when your memories are locked away."

Hikari stopped running. "Wait… What?"

Ventus also stopped to look at the brunette. "It's for your own good." He simply said with a smile before turning away to continue running. "Now c'mon! We need to stop that Unversed!" he shouted over his shoulder.

"Okay, but you better explain everything after all this!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Both Ventus and Hikari followed the Unversed until it stopped to reunite with two more Unversed. The two teens watched as the three Unversed began to shift, combining themselves into something bigger. The brunette noticed someone was already there, a tall man with dark brown hair. And at the same time, a woman she recognized was running closer towards him.

"Ven?!" Both Aqua and the man shouted.

"Terra? Aqua?" Ventus glanced over to the two adults.

Aqua glanced over to the brunette. "Hikari?"

"You guys know each other?" Both Terra and Hikari said in unison, glancing at each other before looking at Aqua and Ventus. They all turned their attention to the Unversed when it made a noise. "We can talk later." The one named Terra said.

' _I feel a little left out…'_ Hikari thought when the three keyblade wielders summoned their keyblade. _'But I'm won't let that bring me down!'_ she summoned her rod and lowered herself to a fighting stance.

A while ago, she just thought that the only ones who could wield a keyblade were her brother and Riku, but now three more were added into the list. Perhaps there were more wielders in the past then they were in the present, which kind of makes her think what made them so rare.

"Look out!" Aqua's voice brought Hikari back to reality.

The Unversed's hands suddenly strike forward making the four of them jump into two separate directions. Terra and Aqua stood on the right side as Ventus and Hikari stood on the opposite side. They all looked at each other and nodded, silently agreeing to take the Unversed's arms and legs first. The Unversed's arms moved around rapidly, trying to hit the keyblade wielders and the magic user.

"Whoa!" Hikari exclaimed when she dodged rolled away to avoid the large hand that tried to squish her. The pair of hands began to pound down on them, following where they were trying run. The brunette ran towards Ventus and threw her rod at one of the hands, making it miss the blond boy beneath it. She stood beside Ventus, her eyes glaring at the Unversed. "What's next? Lasers?" she asked sarcastically.

"Don't say that. You're gonna jinxed it!" Ventus said and as soon as he said that the Unversed's hands went back to attach themselves to the body. The two teens stared in disbelief when the hands began to glow a bright color. It began to shoot white beam of lasers at them. Hikari quickly stood in front of Ventus, casting a barrier over herself and the boy as the lasers began to attack them. "You jinxed it!" the blond shouted.

"You're the one who jinxed it!" Hikari retorted as she dismissed the barrier. The Unversed stopped for a brief moment, gathering energy in its hand before shooting a large beam as it moved in a circle. The two teens quickly ducked down, lying flat on the ground to avoid the laser. As soon as the beam moved from above their head, they quickly went back up to their feet, dashing forward to attack when it was busy. "Let's just finish it before we jinxed it more!" she exclaimed.

Ventus nodded his head in agreement. "Way ahead of you!"

Hikari pointed her rod at the Unversed's back. "Freeze!" she shouted and a ray of blue light was shot out of the head of her rod. As soon as the ray of light hit the back of the Unversed, it burst into spikes of ice, making the body move stiffly, but that didn't stop it from attacking. The arms and legs shifted, dispatching themselves from the body to their original form. "Fira!" she shot a fire ball at one of the limbs. She frowned when her magic has no effect on the monster's armor.

"One more time!" Hikari heard Aqua yell from across where she was standing. The brunette nodded her head and the two girls pointed their weapon at the Unversed, the tip of their weapon glowing a flaming red. "Fira!" they both shouted in unison, shooting fire from each side.

Terra and Ventus dashed towards the limb that Aqua and Hikari were attacking. They both slashed the legs, making them disappear in black smoke. The two boys landed on the ground with a soft thud. They both straightened up and stood beside their switched partners. The body of the Unversed broke free from the ice spell Hikari casted earlier. Ventus and Aqua went towards it, facing it as Terra and Hikari take care of the other one. Terra glanced over his shoulder to Hikari, who nodded when he motioned his head for her to follow after him. The two chased after the arms that morphed into a giant floating fan.

The two of them moved away when the Unversed lunged forward, it's propeller blades going head first at them. It continued to move forward towards Ventus and Aqua. Terra quickly chased after the Unversed, trying to stop it from coming closer towards his two friends. Hikari gripped on her rod tighter and drew it back as far as she can before she threw it at the propeller blades, stopping it from moving.

"Yes!" Hikari cheered, pumping her fist up when the Unversed fell. She watched Terra swung his keyblade at it, landing a critical and heavy attack in one swing. She turned her head where Aqua and Ventus were fighting the main one. She watched in amazement when the three keyblade wielders worked together to take it down. Aqua went in first before Terra and Ventus went in for the kill. The Unversed broke down into parts before it disappeared the same way its arms and legs did. "You guys did it!" she shouted when she regrouped with them, a grin on her face.

Terra chuckled, shaking his head. " _We_ did it." He said, glancing around to his two friends and then to the brunette. He held something out and handed the rod back to the user.

Hikari took the rod, rubbing the back of her neck with a bashful look. "The name's Hikari." She summoned the rod away and offered her hand for Terra to shake.

"Terra." The man introduced, shaking the girl's hand.

Aqua giggled. "We sure make a pretty good team."

Ventus nodded his head in agreement. "We sure do!" he smiled at his friends before a look came across his face. He fished something out from his pockets and handed the two lifetime passes to Disney Town to both Terra and Aqua. "I got you these tickets. He said to take two grown-ups…" he pouted when he said the last words.

The blue-haired woman blinked. "Do you mean us?" she asked before bursting into laughter with Terra. She glanced over to Hikari who tilted her head when she noticed the woman was looking at her.

"Oh! Yeah! I just remembered that I need to look for someone." Hikari said, getting what Aqua was trying to tell her. It was something they needed to discuss without her. Aqua smiled at her for understanding while Ventus gave her a confused look. "Talk to you later." She said her goodbye before she walked away.

"Ven, we need to take you home."

Hikari stopped when she heard Aqua spoke. Eavesdropping on her friends was wrong. She shook her head, shaking the thoughts away. She decided to continue to walk back to the town square to find both Scrooge and her younger self.

The brunette continued to walk through the Aqueduct, Radiant Garden's irrigation system. She really didn't pay that much attention to her surrounding when she was chasing the Unversed with Ventus. She was too focused on the Unversed. In a few minutes, she finally reached the fountain court. The tall fountains were made to look like giant waterfalls and it was pretty amazing to look at. She smiled at the sight of the giant fountain, hoping that the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee can restore it.

She continued her way back to the castle's town, but she didn't find anyone there. She continued to look in the town square. Her eyes glanced around and her eyes widened when she saw more Unversed surrounding an aged man.

"You really don't care about age, now do you!?" Hikari shouted as she summoned her rod. She ran towards the old man and the Unversed surrounding him. She stood in front of him and glared at the Unversed around them. "Let me handle this." She said, giving a reassuring smile.

"I put my trust in you." The old man replied.

Hikari nodded and raised her rod, blocking the Unversed's attack. She thrust her rod at it and then threw the rod to the ones in front of her. The rod came spinning back into her hand and she raised it above her head, pointing it at the sky. "Thunder!" lightning strike down on the Unversed and she swung her rod around, taking out the remaining Unversed.

The old man clapped his hands. "Very well done." He praised.

The brunette smiled, summoning the rod away. "Thank you, sir!" she crossed her hands behind her head before her eyes stared at the old man's appearance. His attire was black and detailed. He has no hair except for the beard, but the things that stood out from him the most were his piercing golden eyes. She shook her head and cleared her throat. "Well umm, are you hurt?" she asked, taking out a potion for the aged man to take.

The old man shook his head. "Thank you for your concern, but I'm not hurt." He answered making Hikari nod and put the potion away. "Please excuse this old man, he has something to take care of." He continued as her walked away.

"N-Not at all! Please be careful around those monsters." Hikari shouted when the old man kept on walking.

The old man glanced over his shoulder, giving a nod. "I certainly will. Thank you for saving me, child." He thanked with a smirk across his lips before he continued on his way to who knows where.

Hikari smiled, waving her hand in goodbye. She glanced up to look at the castle. "Maybe they went over to the castle…" she said to herself before walking towards the direction of the castle.

"Hikari!" She suddenly heard someone shouted her name.

Said girl turned around to look. "Terra?" she waited until the man was close enough to her to ask. "What do you need?"

"Have you seen someone walked pass here?" Terra asked.

"Just an old guy. Why?" Hikari crossed her hands behind her head. "He went over there if you want to know." She pointed her finger at the direction where she last saw the old man.

Terra nodded. "Thanks." He thanked and Hikari nodded her head. "Before I go… Can I ask you a favor?"

The brunette nodded. "Sure. As long as it doesn't have to do with cleaning, I'm okay." She grinned, making a joke.

The dark-brown haired man laughed. "Don't worry, it has nothing to do with cleaning." He said as he took a step closer to the girl. He placed his hand on her shoulder, staring at her eyes. "Please take care of Ven and Aqua for me." He said.

Hikari blinked. "Okay… but shouldn't you too? You're their friends too, right?"

Terra smiled, closing his eyes. He turned around, his back facing Hikari. "I'm counting on you, okay?" he said before he took off to the direction where the old man went.

Hikari scratched the back of her head. "That was… unexpected… This day just keeps dragging on and on… just how many people did I met here?" she sighed. "I'm crossing my fingers that I really didn't meet that creep." She took a deep breath, staring at the sky with her fingers crossed.

"You there." The brunette turned around and she gave a deadpan look.

' _Speak of the devil…'_ Hikari sighed before replying. "Yeah?"

The man who she hoped she doesn't mean, suddenly appeared right in front of her eyes. "Have you seen a little boy around here?" he asked.

"Not that I know of… No." Hikari answered.

The man hummed.

"Hey! It's you!" a childish voice yelled at her. The brunette turned around to find Little Hikari and another little girl walking towards her. She thanked her younger self for arriving in the most perfect timing. She kneeled down when the two girls finally reached her. "So, did you defeat the monster?" the little brunette asked excitedly.

"We sure did!" Hikari laughed. "And who's m—your friend?" she corrected herself, staring at the girl beside her younger self.

"Oh! She's my new bestie! Her name's Naminé!" Little Hikari introduced, side-stepping to let Hikari see the blonde girl.

"H-Hello…" Naminé greeted quietly as she hid behind Little Hikari.

"Naminé?" Hikari repeated the name. She placed her hand on her chin, thinking back to where she heard that name before. Her eyes widened in realization when she remembered that one of the Organization members, the crazy female one, was the one who mentioned the name to her. "So, you're Naminé…" she smiled as the girl nodded.

They knew each other after all.

Little Hikari grinned. "She's a little shy, but she'll warm up to you! Who's your friend?" she asked back.

"We just met." Hikari glanced back to Vexen before replying.

The man hummed again. "Interesting…"

Hikari cringed. _'Did he notice? Well anyone would but…'_ she replaced her uncomfortable look with a smile.

"Did you two see a boy on your way here?" Vexen asked.

"We saw one! He's got a funky hairdo!" Little Hikari answered, pointing her finger to Town Square.

"I see, thank you." Vexen nodded his head.

Litte Hikari shrugged. "We have to go now! We have to look for Mr. Scrooge!" she said as she took her friend's hand, pulling her along as they walk towards the castle's town. "See you later!" she shouted.

Hikari stood up, staring at the two little girls.

"Don't worry Naminé…. I'll definitely save you."

The brunette gave a smile.

"If you are done talking to yourself, I would like some assistance in finding the boy." Vexen said, snapping Hikari back to reality.

"Right." Hikari nodded her head. _'I'm doing this for the kid. I'm doing this for the kid.'_ She chanted, taking a few deep breaths before walking beside the man towards the town square. When they reached town square, a blond teenage boy along with a small blue-haired boy were in the middle. "Ven?" she said aloud, making the blond turn to her as she jogged towards him.

"Ienzo, there you are." Vexen said as he also approached the two. "Didn't I warn you not to wonder off, child?"

"No wonder he wondered off…" Hikari mumbled under her breath, earning a jab to her arm from Ventus. "Aw! What?" she gave the blond a look.

Vexen turned to Ventus. "I see we owe you our thanks. We tried our best to raise the boy since his parents could not."

Ventus gave the small boy a sympathetic look. "No problem, sir."

"I thank you once again for keeping Ienzo out of harm's way. And… Well, let's say that I get a feeling we are destined to cross paths again." Vexen smirked as he turned around to walk away with Ienzo.

Hikari gave a dirty look at Vexen's back. "I'll say…" she said, crossing her arms before receiving a slap to the back of her head. "What? What did I do?" she gave Ventus an annoyed look.

Ventus shook his head. "Never mind… Anyway, have you seen Terra?" he asked.

The brunette nodded. "He went there to follow an old man." She pointed her finger to the direction of the Outer Gardens.

"Thanks." The keyblade wielder nodded his head and ran towards the Outer Garden, but he suddenly stopped, turning around to face his friend.

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Please come with me."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Cheer up, Ven."

Ventus grunted. "How could I?"

Hikari sighed as she stared at the glum and sour boy. After Ventus told her to come with him, they met Terra. He asked Terra to take him with him, but Terra declined. Same goes with Aqua. Hikari felt sorry for the blond teen since both of his friends declined to take him with them. She knew the two of them were just doing what's best to protect Ventus, but if she was in Ventus' shoes she would've been bummed out too. She was bummed out when Sora told her to stay with Leon while he, Donald and Goofy went to take care of Maleficent.

"Well… You don't have to listen to them?" Hikari suggested, trying to cheer the boy up. Ventus turned to look at her, giving a look. The brunette raised her hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay, you're right, it's a bad advice. Sorry… I won't give any more advice." she sighed.

Ventus twirled the wooden keyblade in his hand and he lost his grip on it. The wooden keyblade flew from his hand, landing a few feet from him. Hikari went over to take the wooden keyblade for her friend, but someone beat her to it. The brunette's left eye twitched when she saw who the person was.

"This yours?" the fiery redhead asked as he held the wooden keyblade up.

His friend, the blue-haired one, turned to look at him. "We don't have time for this."

"Lighten up, Isa! This will only take a few sec." The redhead grinned as he approached the blond. He spun the wooden keyblade around. "You still play with wooden swords? That's really cute." He held the keyblade out from Ventus to take.

The blond huffed as he took the keyblade back.

The redhead smirked. "Now this right here—," he pulled out two Frisbees, spinning them around with his fingers. "Tada! What do you think?"

Ventus scoffed. "Not a whole lot."

Hikari rolled her eyes. "Don't think a pair of Frisbees could actually hurt anything." She crossed her arms, giving a smirk.

The redhead turned his head to face the brunette, giving a grin. "Oh really?"

"Duh—OW! Hey! What was that for?!" Hikari rubbed the top of her head where the redhead had smacked her. She glared at him and he gave a smug smirk. The brunette pouted. "Point taken." She said.

"You two are just jealous!"

"Not really, Axel." Hikari said.

The redhead turned to face the girl. "Axel? Who's Axel? The name's Lea. Get it memorized." He tapped his temple twice, a grin on his face. "So, what are your names?"

"Ventus."

"Hikari."

The similarities between Lea and Axel were a lot. He has the fiery red hair and bright green eyes, not to mention the same personality. Though, she did wondered why Lea changed his name to Axel and joined the crazy Organization party.

"Okay, let's fight!" Lea suddenly blurted out.

Ventus gave a look. "Huh? Why?"

"Why? You chicken?" Lea mimicked a chicken's sound, taunting the blond.

The blond shook his head as a smile appeared on his lips. He stood up and stand in a fighting stance to face Lea. "You've asked for it."

Hikari sighed, giving a smile soon after. "I'll sit this one out."

The redhead's friend appeared beside her. "Wise decision." He said.

The two of them watched as Ventus and Lea began to spar with their toy weapons. The result was expected. Ventus came out to be the winner. It was kind of expected since Ventus probably had years and year of training with a keyblade while Lea has no experience against a keyblade wielder.

Lea sat on the ground, panting. "You… had enough? 'Cause I'm willing to call it a draw if you want."

Ventus laughed. "Right…"

"From where I stood, the only thing you drew was a big L on your forehead for Loser, Lame, Laughable…" Isa listed as he approached the redhead.

Hikari snorted in laughter.

"Isn't this the part where you cheer me up or something? Some friend you are…" Lea groaned.

The four of them laughed.

"Lea, we have to go." Isa said and Lea nodded his head.

"'Kay."

"Already?" Ventus sighed.

Lea laughed. "I'll see 'ya when I see 'ya. After all, we are friends. Get it memorized."

"It was nice meeting you, Axe—Sorry… Lea." Hikari gave a sheepish smile. "Even though you're a sarcastic jerk in the future." She mumbled under her breath and Ventus elbowed her in her arm. "Aw!"

Ventus smiled at Lea, "Thanks Lea."

The two of them watched as Lea and Isa left. "So, Ven, before I forget…" Hikari turned to face the blond who hummed in reply. "What you said somethingearlier… something about my memories. What do you mean by that?" She asked seriously.

"I mean what I mean. It's for your own good."

"But—,"

When Hikari glanced up, the boy disappeared. She sighed deeply.

"I'm beginning to think everybody is avoiding me."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Congratulations on completing the fifth floor."

Hikari raised her head, seeing the same woman she saw a few floors below. She watched as the woman walk down the small set of stairs, a smirk gracing her lips.

"If you're here to give me a card, I already have one." Hikari gave a triumph look as she pulled out the card Scrooge gave her. She pocketed the card and faced the woman. "But I wouldn't mind if you gave me some. I'm getting really sick of meeting you guys on each floor." She frowned.

"It's only been five floors, you still have a long way to go before you reached the top, kiddo." The blonde woman laughed. She pulled out a card and waved it around teasingly. "If you want it, you're going to have to prove yourself to me." She said.

"I don't have time for your games. Sora and Naminé needs me—!" Hikari paused when the woman started laughing. "What's so funny!" she demanded.

The woman clutched her sides from laughing. "You've finally remembered? Took you awhile!"

Hikari frowned. "Naminé is my friend and I'm going to wipe the floor with you if you even think about touching her!" she shouted as she summoned her rod.

The woman grinned. "Then how do you think we even got her here in the first place, hmm?"

"Exactly! Fire!"

Hikari pointed her rod at the woman and she quickly dodge her attacks, countering them with her knifes. The brunette blocked the throwing knifes with her rod, hitting them like a baseball. She drew back her rod and threw it at the blonde woman. The woman easily avoided the rod and she threw her knife at Hikari's foot. Hikari quickly raised her foot to avoid getting hit by it. The woman stopped attacking her and she wondered why. She jumped back and caught her rod.

"Here. I'm entertained enough." The woman suddenly spoke and she threw the card up into the air, letting it fall to the floor. "Be sure to be quick to save the damsels in distress." She laughed as she disappeared into a portal.

Hikari glared at the spot where the woman had disappeared. She cautiously walked to where the woman dropped the card and picked it up. Her eyes scanned the picture printed on the card. Destiny Islands. She picked up the other card, the one she received from Scrooge. She pocketed Destiny Island, deciding to visit Disney Town first before visiting her home world. She saved the best for last.

"Alright… Let's see what I did in Disney Town."

* * *

A/N: Keep in mind that Even didn't introduce himself as Even, so Hikari just assumed his name is Vexen lol.

Anyway, how you enjoy :D

leave your thoughts about this chapter in the review


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: sorry for the less updating! But thank you guys so much for the support!

Special thanks to everyone who has faved, followed, read and reviewed this story! :D

guest: I was planning too… but I finished typing the chapter first so yeah haha, but I already finished till drawing chapter 5's cover though

Anonymous: Thank you! I'm glad you like it! Different? As in personality and looks?

Guest 1: Thank you so much! I'm planning something more bigger and heart-breaking lol! But thank you for the suggestion! It gave me a few ideas ^^

Guest 2: it's okay ^^ I hope you pass on your midterms and thank you so much! YES! Get away from Hikari you bad bab bald man! Actually I do plan on having Sora ^^ and yes! I'm excited to see it! But here I think it'll come later than usual sigh… and yes! Duck Tales! I have the theme song stuck in my head. I love watching it.

c-guest: Aww thank you so much! Aqua is also my fav!

Forgetful Insanity: All will be explained hehe

SuperSonicBros123: Thank you so much ^^ well Namine already began to tamper with her memories so… we'll have to see ^^

Lulu9814: Thank you! And yeah she already has begun to change Hikari's memories.

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 7  
reflection

* * *

Hikari glanced around, her blue eyes observing the area around her. The buildings definitely pictured what Disney Castle's town should be. Bright and colorful. Her eyes wondered from the buildings to the banners above her head. The whole plaza was decorated with them. Sure, it adds to the whole 'bright and colorful plaza', but she thought that the plaza would look better if they could take down a few of the banners.

Aside from the scenery, she could also hear some upbeat music being played around. It kind of made her want to hum along the cheery tune.

"I wonder if I met everyone when I was little…" The brunette trailed off as she thought back to Minnie, Daisy, Donald, Goofy, Chip, Dale and the triplets. She hummed as she crossed her arms. "But shouldn't they remember me like Mr. Scrooge when I met them?" she mumbled under her breath with a frown on her lips. "I understand the triplets and maybe Chip and Dale since they're probably really young, but Queen Minnie and the others… Ugh… Brain fart…" she sighed, slumping her shoulders.

Hikari shook her head, trying to shake away the thoughts. "No use thinking over it now." She took a deep breath before exhaling loudly. Thinking back to Ventus' words, if he was saying the truth about her memories being locked away, then thinking about it would be pointless. She wondered how locking memories was possible, but then again, everything in this castle were connected to memories. "Okay! Stop thinking of it!" She said to herself, patting both her cheeks simultaneously a few times.

"Ta-da!"

"Huh?!" Hikari turned around, placing a hand over her chest. She could practically feel her heart beating rapidly because of the sudden appearance of the person. She sighed deeply when she saw that it was only a cat-man wearing a white hero costume. She was scared that it might some sort of happy-go-lucky villain or something, but then again what evil villain can come from a harmless world like Disney Town?

"Wearin' the mask of peace and hope…comes the fearless defender and hero of this town! It is me— Captain Justice!"

"…what?" Hikari blinked, giving a deadpan look. Her left eye twitched when _Captain Justice_ strike a heroic pose. For a second there, she could've sworn she saw some flashy red and yellow background—like the ones she read in the superhero comic books—behind the so-called-hero. "Uh…" she trailed off, completely out of words.

Captain Justice straightened up before he walked closer, approaching the girl with a smug look. "My hero-senses are saying that you have some trouble!" he moved his hand and placed it on his hip, glancing down at the girl.

Hikari scratched the back of her head. "That's kinda obvious, huh?" she said. Everyone who saw her would think that she has some trouble. According to everyone at the Restoration committee, she was really expressive when it comes to showing her emotions. It was almost as if reading a book. Even Leon and Cloud warned her about being too expressive.

"Say no more, Captain justice is here to make all your problems disappear!" Captain Justice boasted, puffing his chest out as he placed his hands on his hips. "Just name it, kid! What seems to be bothering 'ya?"

The brunette gave a soft sigh. "I don't think it's something that could be solved so easily… Not that I think you're not capable of solving it of course!" she quickly added, afraid that she might offend the cat-man.

Captain Justice laughed. "Nothing that Captain Justice can't fix!"

"Well um…" Hikari's eyes glanced over to her left and right, debating whether if she should ask Captain Justice about the truth or not. She gave a loud sigh, slumping her shoulders when a single thought came to mind. Ventus, Aqua, even Riku and those Organization members never gave a straight answer like she wanted. Asking Captain Justice would probably just be the same. She decided to just go with the flow. If everyone said that she would remember soon, then she just has to believe that she would. "Then… what's will all of the decorations? Is there a festival or something?" she asked, deciding to ask about Disney Town instead.

Captain Justice blinked, "That's all?" he asked and the girl nodded. He straightened his posture and turning to the side, giving a proud grin. "Well that's easy! The Dream Festival is comin' up! So, I made sure there's festival stuff all around town. Wouldn't be a festival if there's nothing decoratin' the town, am I right?" he laughed.

Hikari smiled, nodding her head. "I guess you're right. You're pretty nice to do all that stuff." She complimented as she crossed her hands behind her head.

"Heh! Thanks, kiddo!" the cat-man looked even more proud when he received a compliment from Hikari. "Just be sure to write that down when you vote for Captain Justice." He tilted his head up high, a smug look on his face.

The brunette blinked, "Vote?" she repeated. "Vote for what exactly?"

Captain Justice jumped in surprise, turning to face Hikari with a startled look. "F-Forget about it!" he moved his hands in front of his face frantically. He quickly recovered and turned around, his back facing the girl. "Just remember the one who solved all of your problems is Captain Justice. That's Justice with a capital J."

"…okay?"

"Help! Oh, somebody help!"

Both Hikari and Captain Justice turned their head when they heard a cry for help. A tall female cow dressed in yellow was running around frantically, a frightened look across her face. She kept on glancing back, as if someone was chasing her. Before Hikari could even have the chance to respond, Captain Justice was already running towards the cow.

"Did I hear a cry for help? Have no fear! Captain Justice is on his way!" Captain Justice shouted as he ran towards the frantic cow.

Hikari debated whether she should go and help the cow when Captain Justice already approached her. When it was her shift to patrol or not, the brunette was always there to help whenever anyone from Hollow Bastion asked for her assistance. Be it protecting someone from Heartless or even babysitting a couple of kids when their parents were busy. She would try her best to help everyone around to feel comfortable in the world. She finally made up her mind.

' _It doesn't hurt to help and maybe Captain Justice need some help to help the lady cow.'_ The brunette thought.

Captain Justice appeared in front of the cow, standing proud and tall. "What seems to be the problem, kind citizen?" he asked heroically.

The cow stared at Captain Justice, looking up and down. " _Oh_ … it's you…" she said unenthusiastically, giving a loud sigh. She had a look on her face, almost as if she was disappointed to see him. "Is there anybody else willing to help other than you?" she looked around, trying to find someone else other than the _hero_.

At that moment, Hikari arrived beside Captain Justice, glancing at him before her gaze landed on the cow. "We heard you call for help. Is there something bothering you, lady?" she asked.

"Oh, thank heavens," the cow sighed in relieve before she grabbed both of Hikari's hands, cupping them in her gloved ones. The brunette blinked as the cow began to 'moo' loudly. "It's a disaster! The Avenue is a complete mess!" she said, a worried look across her face.

Captain Justice stomped his foot on the ground angrily. "Hey! I'm the hero around here! You should ask me rather than a kid!" he pointed his finger rudely at Hikari before he pointed his thumb at himself, revering that he was the person the cow should ask.

Hikari raised an eyebrow when she witnessed the change of behavior from Captain Justice.

The cow turned her head to face Captain Justice. "You? Oh, _please_." She released her hold of Hikari's hands. She crossed her arms over her chest, turning her head to look away from Captain Justice with a frown on her face. "I bet you can't even handle one of those things." She huffed out, still not looking at him.

Captain Justice's whole body shook in fury. "Oh yeah?! Just name who it is and I'll give them a good poundin'!" he shouted, smashing his fist against his opened palm a few times.

"Okay then, _Captain Justice_ , let's see if you can really be the hero this time." The cow stressed out the cat-man's name, finally turning her head to look at him, but this time, an annoyed look was seen across her face. Captain Justice straightened his posture as he gave Hikari a smug look which made the brunette frown as she narrowed her eyes. One minute the guy was acting all helpful and nice to her, and the next minute he was being rude and cocky. "There's monsters all over the Avenue and they're ruining the festival! Please give them a good pounding of yours." She continued, staring at Captain Justice with a look.

Captain Justice cringed. "M-Monsters? Nope! Not on my list!" he turned his head away, crossing his arms.

Hikari gave Captain Justice the stink eye. "What? Since when did heroes became picky about their job?" she asked as she glared at the tall cat-man, her hand on her hip. "I thought heroes were supposed to help everyone in need, hmm?" she leaned forward as she furrowed her eyebrows.

Captain Justice turned to face the brunette, glaring down at her as well. "You don't understand, kid! No one would stand a chance against those monsters—I mean, only Captain Justice can handle it!" he quickly corrected and turned around, walking away from the two. "But sadly, I would have to put you on hold. I have some other citizen in dire need of my help!" he ran off, leaving the two girls alone.

The cow shook her head, 'tsk'ing. "I knew he's too scared to do it." She sighed.

Hikari huffed, nodding her head in agreement. "I'll say… some hero he turned out to be…" she mumbled and the cow also nodded her head in agreement. The brunette took a deep breath before turning to face the cow, a determined look across her face. "So, where's the Avenue? I'm not a hero, but maybe I can help." She summoned her rod into her hand.

The cow nodded and she began to lead the way, the brunette following right behind her. "Right! Please follow me!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora ran up the set of stairs when he finished going through the Ninth Floor. Both Donald and Goofy caught up to him when he reached the Tenth Floor. They both panted heavily as Sora looked around the empty room. A frown came across his features when he noticed that a certain silver-haired teen was no where to be seen. He was expecting to encounter his friend again after what happened in the previous floor.

Jiminy sat on Sora's shoulder, staring at the boy with a worried look. "Is something the matter, Sora? Why the long face?" he asked, tipping his top-hat up to look at him better. "Is this about Riku?"

"Speaking of him… where did he go?" Donald looked around and when he didn't spot the silver-haired teen, he crossed his arms, furrowing his eyebrows down. "So, we ran all the way up here that fast for nothing?" he huffed.

Goofy shrugged. "Maybe he just got tired of fightin' with 'ya Sora."

Sora sighed. "I sure hope so… I don't want to fight my best friend over and over again because we want to protect the same person."

"Gwarsh, Naminé must be really important to the both of you." Goofy giggled behind his hands.

The brunet grinned sheepishly as he scratched his cheek. "W-Well yeah! She's been our friend since we were little! Riku, Naminé, Hikari and me! We play with each other all the time!" he smiled, recalling the good old memories.

Donald and Goofy exchanged looks. "Who's Hikari? You never mentioned her before." Donald asked confusedly.

Sora blinked. "I haven't?" he glanced over to his two friends standing before him and then to the cricket on his shoulder. All three of his friends shook their head and the brunet hummed. "Hmm well, she's my younger sister." He said.

"WHAT?!" Donald, Goofy and Jiminy yelled out in surprise.

"You never mentioned anything about having a sister, Sora!" Jiminy was shocked that the boy never mentioned anything about his sister.

Sora glanced down to the cricket. "I… guess it just slipped my mind."

Donald stomped his foot on the floor a few times, his fist balled up as he glared at the spiky-haired teen. "How can something that important slipped pass your mind, Sora!" he quacked angrily.

The brunet cringed. He didn't know why Donald was so angry at him. "I don't know…. It just slipped my mind." He admitted, not knowing the answers himself. He just kind of remembered when he mentioned her name not a few minutes before. It was weird and he felt guilty for not remembering his own sister. "Huh… I guess I was so keen on saving Naminé and Riku that I… kinda forgot about Hikari…" he felt a jab to his heart when he realized his mistake.

"Well, how about you tell us about her?" Goofy suggested, giving a smile.

Sora snapped his fingers, grinning at the dog. "You're right, Goof!" he said before he began to hum, placing a hand on his chin as he closed his eyes. He began to try and remember what he can about his sister. "Well… for starters… she looks a lot like me, but like a girl version of myself and less-spiky hair." He described poorly.

Donald gave Sora a deadpan look. "Way to be descriptive, Sora…"

Sora ignored Donald's comment. "Oh! She's pretty friendly and try to befriend _everyone_! And I mean _everyone_ she can. A little bit snarky and _loves_ to take naps." He explained, a smile on his lips.

"Sounds like someone I know." Goofy chuckled.

Sora glanced over to Goofy. "But…She wasn't so outgoing and friendly back when we were kids though…"

Jiminy blinked. "So, you're saying that she was different."

The brunet nodded. "Yeah, she went missing, but then came back to be completely different… I'm not complaining since she made so many friends after that…" he continued as Jiminy began to scribble some notes into his journal. Donald and Goofy looked at Sora, waiting for him to continue. "And she befriended Naminé quicker than you can say 'Destiny Islands' and since then, we became inseparable. The four of us."

"Where is she now?" Donald asked, tilting his head.

"Back at Destiny Islands. I'm a hundred percent positive." Sora grinned, placing his hands on his hips as he nodded. "I just need to save Naminé and Riku, and then we'll be back together again!"

"Oh, how sweet!"

The trio turned around as they heard a woman from behind them. Sora, Donald and Goofy summoned their weapon as Jiminy hopped back inside Sora's hood. The trio glared at the blonde woman as she smirked, a sadistic glint behind her bright colored green eyes.

"What do you want now?!" Sora shouted, glaring at the woman.

Larxene laughed. "Oh, nothing. Just thought I come down and say 'hello'!" she said as she crossed one arms over her chest, supporting her left elbow. "And then I was just in time to hear your _touching_ story! Oh, so sad that you've forgotten not only your girlfriend, but also your little sister. How tragic…" she sighed, puckering her lower lip to fake her sadness.

Sora furrowed his eyebrows as he gritted his teeth. "What do you know?!"

"Au contraire! I know more than you. About your precious girlfriend and your sister." Larxene grinned when she saw how Sora's eyes widened in surprise before they narrowed into a glare. "By the way, I can see where she gets her personality. She basically caught it from you!"

"Leave Hikari out of this! She's not me. She's her own person! If you even dare touch my sister too I'll—!"

"You'll what? Kill us all? I'd like to see you try, kiddo." Larxene sneered, staring down at Sora with a smirk.

Goofy placed his hand on Sora's shoulder, trying to calm him down. "Sora… she's just messin' with us!"

Donald nodded his head. "Yeah! She doesn't know anything about your family or friends. Only you know!" he quacked, raising his rod towards Larxene.

Sora took a deep breath. "You're right." He turned his gaze back to Larxene and lowered himself to a fighting stance.

Larxene scoffed before she flicked her wrist, throwing something at the direction of the boy. Sora blocked it with his keyblade and it bounced away, landing on the floor in front of him. He narrowed his eyes as he examined the object. It was one of the memory cards. He picked the card up and when he turned his attention back to the blonde woman, she was already gone.

"Gawrsh, where did she go?" Goofy looked around.

Donald huffed. "Ah who cares! At least she's gone for now!"

Sora sighed. He couldn't agree more.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Both Hikari and the cow arrived at the Avenue. The brunette glanced around, her eyebrows furrowed down. The food stalls and game booths were already there, but no one was there to attend, even the vendors behind the stalls were missing. The monsters the cow mentioned were also absent from the place. The brunette kept on walking across the stalls, glancing left and right as she tried to find the Heartless or Unversed.

"Your Highness!" The cow suddenly shrieked.

Hikari quickly turned around just in time to see a familiar Queen being chased by blue creatures. The brunette dashed towards Queen Minnie, her rod held tightly in her hand. "Get down, Your Highness!" she shouted as she raised her rod.

Queen Minnie ducked down as Hikari casted Thunder, shocking the Unversed that jumped at her. Hikari swung her rod at the Unversed, slashing it across before she stood in front of the Queen defensively.

"Who are you?" Queen Minnie asked as she stared at Hikari's back.

Hikari glanced over her shoulder, giving a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Your Highness! Just leave them to me! I'll take care of these monsters." She turned her attention back to the Unversed in front of them.

"Come, Your Highness!" The cow said as she left with Queen Minnie.

Hikari stared at her opponent with a smirk. She was confident that she would win the battle against the Unversed. She faced the type of creatures a few times before when she was with Ventus, Terra and Aqua. At first, she was confused on why there were more creatures besides the Heartless, but Heartless or not, she can handle them.

"Let's do this! Freeze!" Hikari shouted as she pointed her rod at the group of Unversed. A few of the Unversed in the group got hit by her spell and they instantly froze. She drew back her rod and threw it at the frozen Unversed. Her rod missed the unfrozen Unversed as they quickly sink into the ground. She jumped back as they jumped from beneath her. She kept on backing away as she dodged the flying Unversed that were trying to hurt her. She raised her hand, opening her palm as she faced an Unversed. "Fire!" she shouted.

The difference between using a rod and not were a big difference. Her magic was bigger and more powerful when she was using a rod, but when she only used her hand, they caused less damage. She knew that she wasn't as trained as Leon or Cloud or Yuffie and Aerith in combat and magic. She wanted to be able to protect her family and friends. So, she trained under Merlin in hopes of becoming as great as a wizard as he is.

The brunette caught her rod and she quickly swung it at an Unversed, killing it off. She turned around just in time to block an incoming attack. She pushed down the Unversed's claws with the shaft of her rod before casting another Fire spell, aiming it at the head.

"Thundaga!" flash of lightnings strike down in a few points where the Unversed stood, killing a few of the lesser Unversed and paralyzing the stronger ones. She threw her rod one more time at the Unversed like a boomerang. Her rod returned to her hand after it spun in a circle once, killing the paralyzed Unversed once and for all. "Finished…" she sighed in relief as she summoned her rod away, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

From the corner of her eyes she saw a tint of blue. She quickly turned her head to where she thought she saw the color and her eyes widened at the sight of more Unversed. The Unversed twitched before flying around and then dashing inside one of the houses in the Avenue. The brunette narrowed her eyes before she ran forward, attempting to chase after the remaining Unversed.

"Oh, thank you so much for clearing the Avenue from those monsters, my dear." The voice of Queen Minnie made the brunette suddenly stop. Hikari turned to face the Queen and the cow behind her as they both walked closer. The brunette faced the smiling cow before facing the Queen. "What would we ever do without you?" she giggled.

Hikari shook her head. "Don't thank me, Your Highness… There's more of those monsters…" she turned her head to face the house the Unversed went inside.

The cow gasped. "Oh dear! They went inside the Mystery Manor!" she shouted in concern.

"Mystery Manor?" Hikari echoed.

"It's one of the attractions here in the Dream Festival and one of the most important too." Queen Minnie began as she stared at the Mystery Manor's entrance with a worried look. She placed a hand on her cheek as she lowered her gaze. "It has the Enchanted Mirror inside… one of the symbols of the Festival." She continued with a sigh.

Hikari glanced over to the cow, hoping for another explanation.

The cow caught the brunette's confused look. "You see, the Enchanted Mirror is no ordinary mirror. If you look into the Enchanted Mirror, the mirror will reflect what's inside of your heart, the things that you longed the most. Legend says that you will receive the true power if you look into it." She explained.

"An Enchanted Mirror…" Hikari mumbled under her breath. "Then that's another reason why I should stop those Unversed." She summoned her rod back into hand, turning around to face the entrance.

"The Enchanted Mirror is located inside the Mirror Maze." Queen Minnie warned as she turned to the brunette. "The maze is not as easy as it sounds. It's a bit tricky, so please be careful not to get lost." She said.

Hikari nodded her head.

"The Mystery Manor is also divided into four sections. Ground Zero, the Tippy Top Room, The Crazy Stairways and then finally the Mirror Maze." The cow said and Hikari nodded her head in understanding as she tried to memorize the information. "There are a few fake Enchanted Mirrors in the maze, but you'll know the real one when you see it."

"Okay."

The brunette quickly rushed inside the Mystery Manor. She ran along the hallway. The red carpet on the floor and the signs on the wall guiding her across the confusing hallways. In no time, she reached a room with a huge sign above the door that says, Ground Zero. She pushed the door open and walked inside.

"I don't understand why they called it Ground Zero…" Hikari stated as she glanced around the normal looking room. Everything was normal, although the room was larger than normal. The ceiling was higher than usual, she had to tilt her head up to look at the ceiling. She raised an eyebrow when she spotted a door located bellow the ceiling. "Huh… now that's weird…" she said as she scratched the back of her head in confusion.

"Why would the door—woah!" The brunette exclaimed in surprised when she the floor suddenly moved, each part of the room floating into different heights. She glanced down, observing the moving steps and furniture around the room before she took a deep breath. She jumped to the nearest step and she landed on the step slowly. "Huh... so that's why they called it Ground Zero… it's almost like zero gravity…" she concluded as she glanced over her shoulder, staring at the previous step she had been standing on.

When the brunette turned around, she was surprised when she saw a couple of flying Unversed appearing before her. She summoned her rod, preparing herself for battle. She leaped forward and used one of the floating furniture as a kick start to reach one of the Unversed. She swung her rod at the first Unversed, killing it off.

"Yikes!" Hikari shrieked when one of the flying Unversed lunged at her. She casted a barrier around herself and the Unversed hit the protective barrier head first, knocking the ball-shaped barrier a few feet back. A grin made its way up to her lips as she dispelled the barrier. She narrowed her rod at the Unversed. "Blizzard!" she shouted as the ice hit the Unversed.

The brunette threw her rod at it and turned her head when the last Unversed inside the Ground Zero room attacked her. She did a backflip to avoid the Unversed. Her hands grabbed the chair and she quickly swung it at the blue creature, knocking it into the direction where her rod was spinning. Her rod went through the Unversed before it went back into her grasp. She grinned in triumph as she made her way across to reach the door on top.

"If there weren't any Unversed here, I'm sure I would've had so much fun." Hikari smiled as she stared at the room. _'I wonder if I had fun in this Mystery Manor when I was a kid…'_ she thought.

The Tippy Top Room was clear of Unversed, making it easier for her to move around. But moving around in the room wasn't as easy as she thought. The floor would tip to the right or left in an unexpected timing, making her slide and trip all the way to the next door. If she weren't in such of a serious situation, she would've laughed her butt off when she tripped and fall. She was sure she would've laughed twice as hard if she was here with her friends.

' _Maybe I should go to the next Dream Festival with everyone…'_ The brunette thought as she pushed open the door to the next location.

If she remembered correctly the next room was the Crazy Stairways. She silently hoped that the stairs don't suddenly change directions. One time she had a race with Tidus, by running up or down to the opposite escalator. She won of course, but she couldn't remember how many times she almost trip.

The brunette's blue eyes widened when she entered a spacious room. The room was filled with stairs going up and down, left to right, sideways, above and under. There were so many stairs and doors around the room. There were even some upside-down doors located on the bottom of some of the staircases.

"How am I gonna find—never mind…" Hikari trailed off when she saw the Unversed running along the staircase located bellow the one across from her. From her perspective, the Unversed were running upside-down up the stairs to a door. She quickly went over to the first staircase and ran up the steps to reach the door. She quickly opened the door and stepped inside, only to find that she was standing sideways. The surprising thing was that she didn't fall over. It was almost as if she was standing on a flat floor, but her senses and feelings told her otherwise. She could still feel as if she was walking on a wall. "Hey—wait! Stop! Halt!" she shouted when she saw the Unversed kept on moving.

The brunette followed the Unversed, popping into random stairways as she tried to be in the same stairway as them. She debated whether she should jump over to the side where the Unversed are, but decided not to since she was upside down. She didn't want to find out what would happen if she jumped from upside-down to the upright side of the stairway. Finally, she slammed the right door that leads to the final room of the manor, the Mirror Maze.

Hikari walked inside the maze, her eyes glancing around. Her eyes landed on the mirrors located around her. She stared at her reflection, a soft sigh escaping her lips. Call her lazy, but she rarely looks at herself in the mirror. A sad look came across her face when her mind wondered to her brother. Her own face reminds her so much of Sora and every time she looks at herself in the mirror, she sees her brother. She snapped her attention back to reality when she saw a blur of blue passed by her from the reflection on the mirror.

' _No time to be sulking… I have to get to the Enchanted Mirror first!'_ Hikari furrowed her eyebrows as she ran after the Unversed. She watched the Unversed turned to a corner and she did the same, only to find that it was a mirror. She crashed into the mirror and fell to the floor with a loud thud. "Dang…. That really hurt…" she groaned as she rubbed her forehead.

The brunette touched her forehead and winced. "…that's gonna take a while to heal…" she sighed as she turned her head to the opposite direction. She stood up, mentally thanking that no one was there. She was lucky that no one saw her crash into the mirror. Otherwise, she would be a laughingstock for the next decade. Though when she returned to Hollow Bastion, everyone would ask what happened and laugh at her anyway. "I hate mirror mazes." She mumbled when she saw another Unversed.

This time she was careful not to run too fast and to check if the corners are blocked or not. She followed the Unversed from the reflection of the mirrors and was leaded to a hallway with a single circular mirror with detailed carvings in gold and decorated with jewels. She immediately knew that it was the Enchanted Mirror. There weren't any Unversed around which made her kind of suspicious. She summoned her rod, just in case some Unversed decided to jump at her.

The brunette arrived in front of the mirror and stared into her reflection. Nothing happened.

"Why did nothing happen?" Hikari stared at the mirror with a confused look. She placed a hand on her chin, glancing down. "That lady cow did say that there were a few fake Enchanted Mirrors… Is this one a fake?" she glanced up, looking at the mirror before deciding that it was.

Hikari placed her hand on the mirror and put some pressure on it. "Huh?" she quickly retreated her hand when the wall behind the mirror suddenly moved when she put pressure against the mirror. She immediately pushed open the secret door further and she was surprised to find that there was another room. "Woah…" she whispered as she went inside the secret room.

The room was spacious and decorated with flowers and velvet red curtains. A mirror, similar to the one she was last time was placed on the wall.

"No wonder no one can find it… it's behind the fake one!" Hikari concluded as she made her way towards the mirror. "I must be smart then! Wait until everyone hear what I figured out!" she grinned at the thought of telling her friends that she was smart too.

When she reached the middle of the room, Unversed jumped up from the shadows, blocking her path to the Enchanted Mirror. The brunette lowered herself to a fighting stance and she narrowed her eyes at the number of Unversed. There weren't that many, but it will take her some time to get rid of them. She quickly ran forward, trying to outrun the Unversed going closer to the mirror.

"Hah! Too slow!" Hikari grinned when she passed the Unversed and skidded to a stop in front of the mirror, standing in a defensive stance. "You're gonna have to get through me first before even thinking of looking at your ugly face in the mirror!" she smirked.

"Thunder!" Hikari shouted as she casted the spell. She didn't wait and look if the spell she casted hit the Unversed or not. She continued to cast spells and swing her rod at the Unversed. "Firaga!" she narrowed her rod at the Unversed huddled together.

She lifted her right leg as one tried to slash her. She swung her foot and kicked the Unversed at the direction of the other. The brunette threw her rod at it and caught her spinning rod when it came back after a round. She continued fighting against the Unversed until the last of them was finished. By the end of the fight, she was huffing and puffing loudly as she tried to catch her breath.

Hikari summoned away her rod as she huffed, wiping the sweat off her forehead. It was one of the most tiring battle she had against the Unversed and Heartless combined. She had never been this tired, probably because she had been working as a team all this time. The brunette took a minute to rest and take a breath before deciding to check the Enchanted Mirror.

"Is this… the real one?" Hikari asked aloud as she stared into the mirror. A few seconds passed and nothing happened to her reflection. It was still the same. She didn't see what was inside her heart. She looked down, a heavy sigh escaping her lips. "Looks like I've been protecting a fake all along…" she said as she lifted her chin up.

Only to find that her reflection was no longer staring at her.

It was someone else.

"WHOA!" Hikari jumped in surprise when she saw the change. It was a blond teenage boy staring back at her with a dead stare, his blue eyes brighter than normal. "Ven?" she blinked, recognizing the teen.

Hikari glanced over her shoulder, to see if Ventus was behind her or not. No one was there. Just herself and the mirror.

"This is freaky… I know this is all memories and all that, but…" Hikari trailed off as she walked closer to the Enchanted Mirror. "I know that this isn't supposed to happen…" she said, staring at the boy's face.

The brunette gasped when Ventus' hands shot out from the mirror, grabbing her forearms to pull her inside the mirror. She didn't had time to try and pry away from him. It all happened too fast. One minute the reflection wasn't moving and the next it was pulling her inside.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the light. She was in a new place now. It was a familiar place. The white sandy beach, the clear blue sky, the clean ocean. It was Destiny Islands. Funny, she didn't even use her card of Destiny Islands before and the card was still inside her pocket when she checked.

"Hikari." A voice startled her. The brunette turned around, finding Ventus standing a few feet away. The blond smiled. "We finally meet again."

The brunette slowly nodded. "You didn't have to scare me like that… I was about to have a heart attack when you suddenly pull me in!" she huffed, crossing her arms against her chest as she glared at the boy.

Ventus laughed, scratching the back of his head. "Sorry, sorry…" he apologized as Hikari came closer. "It's been awhile since I last saw you…" he sighed.

"What are you talking about? It's not that long since I last saw you. Well technically yes, but you get the picture, right?" Hikari sighed when she remembered that she might probably haven't seen the boy in the last ten years, but she did saw him in Castle Oblivion.

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to visit you sooner… some things came up." Ventus seemed to ignore her words.

"Huh? Ven? You okay?" Hikari asked as she waved her hand in front of the blond's face.

"How's your family and friends? Are they still comparing you to your brother?" Ventus suddenly asked, lifting his gaze up. His eyes turning dead once more.

"W-What?" Hikari took a step back when Ventus' aura began to change. It wasn't the friendly one. More like a cold and deadly one. She never told anyone about her feelings towards Sora when she was a kid, not to her best friends, not even to her own family. It was something she kept to herself and never to remember. "How do you know that?! I never told anyone about it!" she shouted, taking a few steps back.

"I'm your best friend. You told me everything." Ventus smiled. "You even told me that you hate Riku for causing the disappearance of Sora."

"How can we be best friends when I barely know you?" Hikari frowned. "…that was a few floors before. Even everyone at the Restoration Committee knows that… but how did you know about—" she tried to ask him about how he knew about her dislike for Sora when she was little, but was cut off when he gave a chuckle.

" _Silly Hikari_ … I've known you since you were a kid. You and I are the same."

Hikari waited for him to continue.

"I was your only friend. The only one who understands you." Ventus started as he took a few steps closer. "Forget your friends and family. Don't forgive what they did to you. Gather those feelings and embrace it. Use it to awaken your true power." He said, a smile appearing on his lips.

Hikari stared at the blond with wide eyes.

Ventus raised his arm and offered his hand for Hikari to take. "Take my hand, Hikari. Together, we'll be able to put them in their place, to make them suffer for what they did to us."

"No."

"No?"

" _No_." Hikari firmly confirmed as she stared at Ventus with her eyebrows furrowed. Ventus lowered his hand and he tilted his head in confusion. Hikari took a deep breath, placing a hand over her heart. "It's true that I used to hate Sora and everyone else… but that's all in the past. I… don't exactly remember how, but something made me change my mind about how I use to think of everything." She said, closing her eyes.

"I love Sora and everyone. I promised to protect them." Hikari said, opening her eyes to glare at the blond. "I know that I've met you in the past and forgot about you up until Castle Oblivion, but I know one thing's for sure… Ven would never say anything like that!" she shouted as she summoned her rod into hand, preparing herself for battle against the fake Ventus.

Ventus frowned. It surprised Hikari on how fast the expression on the teen's face changed. His eyes seemed to glow brighter when the sky began to darken. In a few seconds, the clear blue sky was covered with thick grey clouds, the sound of thunder roaring was heard as lightning began to flash. The sea became rough and the wind blew harder. It reminded her of the storm that took away Destiny Islands.

Hikari raised her hand to cover her eyes as the wind blew stronger. She tried to keep her eyes on Ventus, but it was hard since the strong wind was blowing straight at her face. Lightning flashed and in a blink of an eye, Ventus was missing from his place. The brunette quickly glanced around, trying to locate him in the storm. Rain began to pour down. It was harder for her to see and fight at the same time now.

" _Oh_ _Hikari_ … _It's a shame really_." She could hear Ventus' voice over the storm as it echoes. Call her crazy, but she heard another voice, doubling over Ventus' own. Her blue eyes darted around as she tried to find the blond.

"Come out so I can kick your butt!" Hikari shouted.

Ventus chuckled. It was creepy hearing him give a dark chuckle and the other voice didn't help either. " _You failed to awaken the true power that lies within your heart. To think that you looked in the mirror to achieve it_."

"Never wanted to in the first place." Hikari retorted, glaring. Her eyes kept on darting left and right to try and find the boy.

" _Then is it the reflection of your heart that you wanted to see? To look what is inside? To see what you really desire?_ "

"I know what I want. I want to kick every bad guys' butt—including yours, get Sora and Naminé out of this freaky castle and go back home!" Hikari yelled, getting tired of the games the fake Ventus was playing.

" _Liar_."

Ventus appeared right in front of her, staring down at her with a dead stare. He suddenly summoned his keyblade and Hikari quickly raised her rod to block his attack. Their weapon clashed in a spark with Hikari trying to push him back, but it didn't work. The blond just stood there with little effort as he kept his dead eyes locked on her fiery blue eyes.

" _Pay back is what you seek_."

Hikari was finally able to push him back. She jumped away and landed a few feet from him, her rod held tightly in her hands.

" _I can see it._ "

The brunette furrowed her eyebrows. "No one can see what I want. The only one who knows me better than anyone else is ME!" she dashed forward, heading straight for Ventus.

" _Pathetic._ "

Hikari skidded to a stop when Ventus disappeared, making her miss. The blond reappeared again behind her. She quickly turned around, glaring at him. She didn't have time to retort when everything burst into light, blinding her. She raised her arms to cover her eyes, but that wasn't enough to cover the intense light. It was bright, but she could still see the smirk playing on Ventus' lips.

" _You're still as pathetic as ever, Sunshine_."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"I'm… back?" Hikari was uncertain of herself. She glanced around her surroundings, finding that it wasn't Destiny Islands anymore. She was back inside the Mirror Maze, standing right in front of the Enchanted Mirror. Her eyes quickly darted to look at something else other than the mirror. She was a bit scared that it might be someone else in the reflection. She really didn't know what happened inside the mirror and why did she triggered such a negative event. "…that was intense…" she sighed out, placing a hand over her chest.

The brunette hesitantly glanced over to the mirror before deciding to look into it. She had to make sure the mirror was working properly. She sighed in relief when she saw herself inside the mirror. She gave a strained smile as she stared at herself. What the fake Ventus said might be true, but she put them all behind. She learned something and changed for the better. She knew that she did.

Hikari jumped in surprise when her reflection began to swirl into another image. She took a step back as the swirling image began to swirl into something she can see. Her eyes widened when it showed a picture of Destiny Islands. She took a few steps closer when the image moved, zooming into the red head and the brunette walking together in the beach.

"Kairi…" Hikari mumbled, a smile appearing on her lips. In the mirror, she saw Kairi and herself talking and chatting happily as they walk together across the beach. Hikari laughed as she continues to stare at the mirror. A second later, she saw a brunet jumped on her back and they both fell, the brunet crushing her. "Sora!" she shouted as she placed both her hands on the mirror.

Hikari's expression turned to a sad one as she continued to stare. "…Sora…" she sighed out. She watched as the three of them laughed and they turn their head to great their other friend who just came inside the picture. A familiar silver-haired teen was seen laughing at them. "...Riku too…"

The brunette watched the four continue their way to their usual sunset watching spot, right beneath the Paopu tree. She stared at their backs as they watched the sunset. Suddenly, four more people came into the picture, walking closer to the four of friends. Only their backs were shown, but Hikari could perfectly tell who's who.

"Ven… Terra… Aqua… Naminé…" Hikari touched the mirror, swiping the glass across gently with her fingers. She placed a hand over her chest as the other was pressed against the mirror. "…is this really true?" she asked herself when the picture zoomed into Riku and herself.

She kept on staring at the silver-haired teen who was chatting with her in the picture.

To be able to talk and just be silly with her friends again.

"Is this… what's inside my heart? What I truly want?"


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I've updated :D thank you guys so much for the favs, follows, reviews and reads! You guys are amazing!

guys, please read Little Adventures too, otherwise it might be a little confusing...

Gry20: Whoa! That's a very interesting idea! I have a few ideas *wink wink*

Guest: I guess they did

c-guest: thank you so much! Congratulations on graduating! :D hehe we'll find out in Little Adventures xD

Lulu9814: lol! Phantom Ven! That's a good one!

Guest: Whoa, that's a lot to do... hehe yeah! Drawing them both is so refreshing! Both Isa and Lea actually met Hikari after they both met Ven lol. Haha yeah, I actually got the idea from when I was playing 0.2 and while visiting a fun-house here too. It almost had the same rooms in the story, except the Zero Gravity one haha, but other than that, everything's the same. I find Mirror Mazes to be difficult and creepy, I bumped into a lot of mirrors though lol.

Guest: thanks!

Anonymous: Thank you! hehe Little Adventures will be the one where we will find out xD

BTW, if you guys have one scene to choose from New Beginnings and Forget Me Not, which scene do you guys want to be drawn out in a comic version?

KH (c) SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 8  
The light in darkness

* * *

"Thank you so much for helping us, my dear."

Hikari smiled. "No problem, Queen Minnie! It was my pleasure to help." She placed her left hand on her hip as she pumped her right hand up enthusiastically.

Queen Minnie giggled.

"You helped us so much, may we know the hero's name?" The cow asked, smiling.

"Please, just call me Hikari. Not Hero or that mumbo jumbo stuff… it doesn't have a nice ring to it, you know?" The brunette said bashfully, scratching the back of her neck with a sheepish look. It wasn't the first time she was called a hero by someone, but she still felt embarrassed when someone called her one. She cleared her throat, looking away for a moment when she heard both Queen Minnie and the cow giggled at her flustered look. "Ehem! Umm… So, may I also know your names?" she coughed.

Queen Minnie did a curtsy, "I'm Minnie. Minnie Mouse, but please, call me Minnie." She gave a curtsy and Hikari couldn't help but did the same.

The cow leaned closer to Hikari. "She's the Queen, but you know that, right?" she gave a wink and Hikari nodded with a smile.

"Well, I'm Clarabelle! Organizer of this year's Dream Festival." Clarabelle placed a hand on her chest and raised her chin up in pride. She turned to look at the brunette. She grabbed the girl's hands, shaking her hands up and down in a friendly manner. "And thank you so much for helping us get rid of those horrible monsters! How could we ever thank you?" she asked, batting her eyelashes as she laced her hands together.

Hikari shook her head. "No! No! There's no need to thank me, really!" she waved her hands in front of her face. She wasn't the type to expect something in return after she helped somebody. She would sometimes joke around and ask for something in return, but she didn't mean it. She was almost paired with Yuffie all the time and they would both joke about it too, but they made sure everyone knew that they were only joking by ending with a laugh and a _'just kidding!'_ phrase. "Besides… I should be the one thanking you." She glanced over to the two.

Clarabelle raised an eyebrow. "How come?"

The brunette placed a hand over her chest, a smile on her lips. "I looked into the Enchanted Mirror and it made me realize how important my friends are." She said, closing her eyes. Even though the mirror was a part of her memories, she was sure that the mirror reflected what her heart wanted. To spend her days with her friends and family. But most importantly, to forgive Riku. "If I didn't… maybe I would never realize how important they are to me." She grinned.

Queen Minnie smiled. "That's very wonderful, my dear." She folded her hands in front of her neatly as she glanced up to look at the brunette. "But I'm afraid we're not the ones who you should thank. Merlin is the one who brought the Enchanted Mirror you see." She said.

"Merlin? As in Merlin the Wizard?" Hikari blinked and the two nodded. She hummed and crossed her arms. _'Well… kinda makes sense since he's magic and all that…'_

The brunette opened her eyes and glanced over to Queen Minnie and Clarabelle, giving them a bright smile. "But still, thank you. For trusting me, a stranger, to protect the Enchanted Mirror."

Queen Minnie giggled. "But you're not a stranger anymore."

"I guess so!"

The three girls laughed.

Clarabelle crossed her arms, a frown on her lips. "What about that Captain Justice? He's not a stranger to us and he ran away without even trying!" she said. Both Hikari and Queen Minnie glanced at each other before turning their head to stare at the cow. "Behind that mask of his, he's just Pete! A selfish man and a troublemaker!" she huffed out angrily.

Hikari couldn't help but agree.

Clarabelle leaned closer to the young girl and covered the side of her mouth with her gloved hand. "I bet you everything that Pete is trying to act all nice to make people vote for him in the Million Dreams Award." She gossiped.

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "The Million Dreams Award?" she echoed.

"It's a part of the Dream Festival. We all vote for who we think is the most admirable citizen. But Pete seemed to have the wrong idea about it…" The Queen let out a soft sighed.

Clarabelle scoffed, crossing her arms. "He thinks that dressing up as a hero makes him a hero too." She added.

"Is that so?" Hikari hummed, placing her hand on her hip.

"The event is supposed to help us appreciate how much we look out for each other. That's the true meaning of the Million Dreams Award." Queen Minnie explained.

Hikari gave a smile. "That's really nice—" she paused when she heard someone spoke.

" _I wish someone was looking out for me."_

Her blue eyes widened. She heard that sentence once. She can't remember when, but she knew who's voice it belongs too. She turned her head and to her surprise, a boy was standing not far from her. She stared at the blond boy. He wasn't looking at her, but he was staring at the sky, a sad smile plastered on his lips. The blond suddenly turned his head to look at her and gave her a sincere smile before he disappeared as the wind blows. The brunette placed her hand on her head, closing her eyes.

"I'm… hearing and seeing things…" Hikari mumbled under her breath, a heavy sigh escaping her lips.

"Are you alright, my dear?" Queen Minnie asked, staring at the girl worriedly.

Clarabelle placed a hand on Hikari's back, guiding the girl to the nearest café. "Maybe you should lay down for a bit… Please order anything you like in the menu. You deserve it." She offered.

Hikari shook her head. "No, thanks. I'm good. Thank you for the offer though." She kindly declined. "I have to get going. I'll see you guys later?" she smiled.

Both Queen Minnie and Clarabelle nodded, "Do come back in time for the Million Dreams Award! I'm sure you'll take the prize because you just got my vote!" Clarabelle laughed.

"Okay!" Hikari joined in the laugh, waving her hand in goodbye as she walked away from the Avenue.

Out of all the floors she went through, this one was the most eventful one, even more than discovering the people she met in the past.

The brunette took a deep breath, glancing up to the clear blue sky.

She closed her eyes, listening to the wind as it blew gently past her.

A childish voice was heard, _"I'll look out for you!"_

Hikari opened her eyes, looking at the sky.

"Ven…"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hikari!"

"Huh—!" The brunette turned around, but she was immediately enveloped in a tight hug. She stumbled back a little and the person hugging her quickly balanced themselves from falling. From the corners of her eyes, she saw strands of silver hair. "Riku?!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Riku pulled away from the hug. "Are you okay?! Are you hurt?!" he grabbed Hikari's shoulders, his eyes darting around to check for any injuries.

"N-No! I'm fine, really!" Hikari answered, staring confusedly at Riku. Sure, he sometimes showed his emotion, but it was rarely concern. She never seen the silver-haired boy so concerned in her life. Even when she saw him for the first time after being separated when Destiny Islands got destroyed by the Darkness. "I should be asking you that! Are you really okay?" she asked.

Riku sighed in relief. "Why wouldn't I be?" he gave a smile. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the expression on Hikari's face changed. "What? What's with that look on your face?" he crossed his arms.

"…you are the real Riku, right?" Hikari gave a skeptical look, pointing her finger at the teen. "Not… the fake one, right?" because she can't really tell the difference anymore between the real one and the fake one.

"I'm hurt that you don't know the real difference between a fake and me…" Riku gave a laugh and Hikari huffed. "Why don't you see for yourself?" he said as he opened his arms.

Hikari took a step forward and pinched Riku's nose, earning a look from him. "Okay! You're Riku alright!" she laughed when she remembered that the meeting she has right now with Riku was similar to the one they had when they first met in the Underworld.

The silver-haired teen rubbed his nose, giving an obvious look. "Duh…"

"Hey Riku, I'm—," Hikari paused when she can't seem to continue her sentence. She averted her gaze to the floor as Riku waited for her to continue. It was a simple five letter word. Everyone can say it, even villains can say it too when they want too, though it would mostly come out as mockery from them. A heavy weight was suddenly put in her chest, it was harder than it looks. Her heart wanted to apologize, but her mind says otherwise. She wanted to say that she was sorry, but her tongue won't let her say it. She took a deep breath and crossed her arms. "I think we should change what you wear… it doesn't go with your eyes." She critiqued, pointing her finger at the boy.

Riku snorted. "Since when did you became the fashion police? I thought that was Selphie's job?"

Hikari grinned. "Well, that's true… but I still think you need to change! You stink!" she pinched her nose as she waved her free hand in front of her face. "Like, Pee-ewww~! I can even smell you all the way from here!" she joked, walking away a few feet from him.

"I'm offended, really… Come here so I can give you a headlock, you little pipsqueak!" Riku threatened playfully. Before Hikari could even respond, the silver-haired teen was already trapping her in a headlock, drilling his knuckles into her head.

Hikari laughed. _'This is… the Riku I remember.'_ She thought as Riku released her from the headlock. Her blue eyes stared at the blue-green eyes and she couldn't help but smile. She turned around to look at the next door. _'I don't know why I can't say sorry to him… I want to apologize, but I just can't say it… but at least we're back to the way we used too…'_ she turned to look at Riku again, crossing her hands behind her neck.

"What? Is there something on my face?" Riku asked.

The brunette shook her head. "By the way… how did you end up having a copy of yourself anyway?" she asked.

Riku looked away, a scowl on his face. "… You've met one of them, right?" He asked as Hikari tilted her head. She met all of them. The flower boy. The crazy blonde. The creepy science guy. And finally, the snarky redhead. "The one with the creepy eyes." he added.

Hikari blinked. "You mean that creepy science dude? Ummm I think his name's Four or Vexen, right?" she gave a disgusted look as Riku nodded his head. She frowned. She didn't like the look that man gave her.

"He did his research of me and collected data about myself and then the rest is… well…" Riku sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry if you came across the fake earlier, Hikari… I must've been a real jerk." He apologized.

"No duh!" The girl smiled as the boy glared at her playfully.

Hikari laughed. "It's okay. It's not your fault." She said and Riku smiled back. "I hope that creepy science dude didn't collect data of me and make a copy of me too…" she cringed at the thought of having to face a copy of herself.

Riku gave a reassuring squeeze to her shoulder. "Don't worry. I won't let him do that." He said, furrowing his eyebrows down. "But sadly… we have to work along with him if we want to save Naminé." He suddenly added.

Hikari almost chocked. "W-What?! What's that supposed to mean?!" she spluttered over her own words, trying to think of a logic on why she should help the Organization. "Why do we have to work along with the bad guys again?!"

The silver-haired teen glanced around. "Hikari… there's actually two groups in the castle," before Hikari could even say anything, Riku covered her mouth to prevent her from yelling. He pressed his finger to his lips. "The upper group are the traitors and Vexen is the spy from the basement group. There's a feud in the Organization and unfortunately they're using us to settle their fight." He explained in a whisper.

"What? I still don't get why we have to help them…" Hikari whispered back.

"That guy… Vexen… he promised to help me save Naminé if I help him take care of the traitors." Riku said and he stretched his arm out, summoning a dark portal. Hikari jumped in surprise when she saw the inky portal in the white room. "Come with me, Hikari. We'll save Naminé together."

"…I heard Sora's in this castle too." Hikari began carefully. She didn't know what Riku felt about he brother anymore. Last time, they both fought and Riku took Sora's keyblade. But Riku changed, right? If he changed his way of thinking about her, he should've changed the way he thought of Sora too. "We should look for him first. If we work together, saving Naminé will be a piece of cake!" she said, testing her own friend.

Riku sighed, giving a sad look. "Hikari… Sora's not the Sora we remembered."

Hikari froze. _'Not this again.'_

"He's working with those traitors to keep me away from Naminé. You have to understand."

' _Not this again.'_ Hikari balled up her hands tightly. A fake smile was seen on her face as she gave a bitter laugh. "Haha… is this a joke, Riku? You're funny—"

"He doesn't remember you. He doesn't even remember about having a sister. He left you, Hikari."

"Shut up!"

"Hikari…"

"Just shut up! Shut up! I don't want to hear it!" Hikari shouted, covering her ears as her shoulders shook in anger. Her eyes were closed tightly as she lowered her head. "I thought you've changed, Riku! This is just like when you try to make believe that Sora abandoned us! But this time, you're trying to make me believe that Sora forgot me? His own sister?!" she lifted her gaze up, her blue eyes glaring at the boy standing in front of her.

Riku doesn't seemed fazed from the glare he received, almost as if he expected the outburst. "Hikari, Castle Oblivion is no ordinary castle… Once you step foot, there's no way of getting back. Sora had the chance to go back and keep his memories of you, but he chose to forget you to continue."

Hikari took a deep breath, "I don't want to hear it anymore." She said. She took a step forward and began to walk towards Riku who just stood at his spot, staring at the brunette. She stopped right beside the boy, her eyes on the white door in front of her. She averted her eyes to look at the boy's blue-green eyes, a dark look across her face.

"I was wrong… for trusting my heart." She placed her hand over her heart, clutching her shirt as she furrowed her eyebrows. "Now I understand why I couldn't say it… You're just as bad as those Organization members. I could never forgive someone who hurt and try to use my brother and my friends." She scowled before continuing to walk towards the door, her back turned from the teen.

The silver-haired teen didn't stop the brunette.

The brunette stopped right in front of the door, holding the Destiny Island card on her hand. She pushed the door open and placed one foot inside the room. "Riku." She called out, her gaze straight into the never ending white light.

Riku didn't even turn to look at her.

"One thing's for sure, Sora would _never_ forget me."

The door closed with a creak.

* * *

~(X)~

* * *

"C'mon Riku! We're gonna be late!"

The silver-haired child chuckled. "Okay, okay. Just let me close the door." He closed the door behind him and followed the girl.

Hikari turned to look at Riku, walking backwards. "Sora, Tidus and Selphie are already with the new girl! Why did I even agree to wait for you?" she sighed in complain as she turned back around to walk straight. The sandals she wore sink in a little into the warm golden sand, leaving footprints behind. She lifted her foot and shook the sand that slipped into her shoe. "If you just leave your homework, we would be playing with everyone by now!" she huffed.

"You don't have to wait. I didn't even ask you to wait for me." Riku retorted, crossing his arms as a smirk appeared on his lips when he saw Hikari cringed. "And you expect me to just leave my homework like Sora? Sorry, Hikari… I think I'd like to keep my title as _best student in class_." He sniggered.

The brunette snorted. "Teacher's pet."

Riku wrapped his arm around Hikari's neck, trapping her in a headlock. "I heard that!" he grinned as he drilled his knuckles into Hikari's head.

"Argh! Stop!" Hikari squirmed as she tried to make Riku stop giving her noogies. "You're gonna make me bald or something!" she shouted in complained.

The silver-haired boy laughed as he released Hikari. "No one can ever grow bald from noogies, Hikari. That's just your imagination." He tapped his right temple a few times, giving the shorter girl a smile.

"Oh yeah? Lemme give you one so you'd be bald in the future!" Hikari jumped at the boy. Riku caught her and spun her around once as she tried to give a noogie to the taller boy. He kept on laughing as Hikari tried to reach the top of his head. "Aww! No fair! You're taller than me!" she huffed and puffed her cheeks out in a pout as Riku placed her down.

"Well, I am two years older than you." Riku reminded, poking her puffed out cheeks.

"Don't act smart." Hikari glared playfully.

"But I am smart, my grades and Ms. Nakamura told me so."

" _Teacher's pet_."

" _Class president_. There's a difference." Riku corrected.

"Potayto, potahto. Same difference." Hikari waved him off as she walked ahead of the boy who shook his head. It was pointless trying to win against her if she pulled the 'potato-potato' card. "We should hurry up if we wanna play with the others!" she shouted as she ran before turning around, walking backwards.

Riku shook his head, a smile on his face. "Slow down, Hikari. You're gonna fall or something if you keep turning around like that." He chided as he walked in a slower pace than the energetic brunette.

"Ah psshhhh!" Hikari blew a raspberry as she turned around to walk straight. "I ain't gonna fall—!" she tripped over her own foot and fell down on the sand.

The silver-haired boy laughed as he jogged over to Hikari's side. He leaned slightly forward, a smirk curving up his lips. " _See_? You should've listen to me." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're such a clutz though! Even more than Sora!" he sniggered.

Hikari lifted her face up and spitted the sand that got into her mouth. "Yeah, yeah…" she pushed herself up with her elbows to a sitting position before lifting her chin up to look at Riku with a deadpan look. "Carry me!" she ordered, stretching her arms out.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Why? I don't see any injuries."

"Aw! Aw! The pain!" the little girl wailed, clutching her right knee.

The boy snorted, rolling his eyes. " _Really_?"

Hikari gave him a look, before she continued faking her injury. "Oh the pain! It hurts so bad!"

"I thought you were injured on your _right_ knee, genius." Riku smirked when Hikari noticed her mistake and switch to clutched her right knee. The silver-haired boy let out a sigh as he turned around, crouching down. "You just want me to carry you, huh?" he said, smiling.

The young girl grinned as she climbed over Riku's back, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Uh-huh!" she chirped happily as Riku stood up with her on his back. "Piggyback ride!" she squealed.

Riku laughed. "You know, I won't be able to do this when you're older."

"Ehhh? Why not?" Hikari whined.

"You'll be taller, and heavier too." Riku added and Hikari glared at the back of his head before she drilled her tiny knuckles into his head.

"You're so mean! You'll be taller and heavier than me when we're older!" Hikari huffed out. "No excuses!"

Riku only laughed.

* * *

~(X)~

* * *

"It's so bright…"

Hikari covered her eyes with her hands, trying to block the light from getting into her eyes. She could feel the sunlight stinging her skin. Her shoes seemed to sink a little into the ground when she put pressure on the heels of her shoes. She could hear the sound of water too. From feeling the environment around her, she didn't need to open her eyes to know that she was in a beach.

Her eyes slowly adjusted to the light and she took a good look at her surroundings. There was a town behind her and an island in front of her with the sea separating the two. She immediately knew where she was.

"This is Destiny Islands…" She concluded, staring at the island. A smile appeared on her lips at the thought of her home. She missed Destiny Islands badly.

Her parents. Selphie. Tidus. Wakka. Kairi…

The brunette frowned when she thought about her red-haired friend. The last time she saw her was when she was about to leave Hollow Bastion to bring Jasmine and Alice back to their respective world. She remembered her promise to her, to come back as soon as possible when she was done, but she didn't. She broke her promise. She had the choice to come back, but she chose not to. No matter how much she misses her home, she just can't seem to bring herself to go home without her brother.

"Kairi's gonna kick my butt for breaking our promise…" Hikari sighed out, already thinking of a possible scenario when she returned. Another thought came to mind, she wondered what her parents would do. Would they miss her and Sora? Would they yell at them for not returning home? Would they ground them for life? Either way, she could image their rage when they returned. "…Mom and dad are gonna kill us…" she groaned.

The brunette took a deep breath and let it out before scratching the back of her neck. She faster she finds Sora and Namine, the faster she can avoid her parents' rage. Her eyes glanced over to the town.

"So, you finally decided to show up!" she suddenly felt a heavy weight around her shoulders. She stumbled over the weight, but she quickly caught her balance and glanced over to the person putting her in a headlock. Her eyes glared at the look the person was giving her. "C'mon, what's with the look?" the person asked, a smug look on his face.

"Tidus, get your sweaty armpit off me! It's disgusting!" Hikari shouted as she tried to get out from the headlock.

"I'm offended really. I didn't even do anything worth breaking a sweat." Tidus grinned as he tightened his arm around the brunette.

"Argh! You will when you try to outrun me!" Hikari huffed out and the blond laughed, finally releasing his friend.

Tidus sniggered. "Since when did you become a girl?" He mocked as he crossed his hands behind his head.

Hikari crossed her arms, giving Tidus the stink-eye. "Haha, very funny…" she laughed dryly. "Ever since I was born, genius."

The blond laughed. "Sassy as ever! Seriously, where did you get your sass? Can't be from your parents or Sora, that's for sure."

Hikari gave a smug look. "I'm original. One of a kind." She puffed her chest out in pride and Tidus snorted in laughter. She rolled her eyes at her friend. "So, what's up?" she asked.

Tidus looked at her, thinking for a moment. "Oh yeah! Naminé's looking for you." He snapped his fingers when he remembered. "She said that she has something to talk to you."

"Naminé?" Hikari echoed, her eyes widening at the mention of the name. "Where is she? What does she want to talk about?" she questioned.

Tidus shrugged. "Probably girls' stuff, I guess… she said to meet her at your _usual spot_." He quoted with his fingers moving in an air quote motion.

"Right…"

"Well, catch you later! Wakka and I have a game to watch!" Tidus said his goodbye, turning around to go back into the town. "It's Besaid Aurochs VS Luca Goers!" he shouted excitedly.

Hikari shook her head, a smile on her lips. "Tell me who wins!" she shouted at him and she received a thumbs up. "Some things never changed…"

The brunette's thoughts wondered to her blonde friend. She looked down to the sand, a troubled look across her features. She began to ponder, a hand on her chin. The thing is… she didn't know where she usually met up with Naminé. Call her a bad friend, but she just can't _seem_ to remember where. She remembered the place where she usually met up with her friends when they want to play around in the island, but she also has favorite places where she likes to hang out with _only_ girls and each spot were different.

Selphie and her likes to hang-out at the playground when school ended, the place where the met when they were little. On the other hand, Kairi and her likes to hang-out on the island or more specifically the tree house. They would sit on the edge of the platform around the large tree and talk or just enjoy the view from the high ground. With Naminé? She completely forgot.

"Maybe… Sora knows… if he's here…" Hikari sighed and stared at the town. She walked towards the path that leads to the town.

Her eyes keep on wondering around, staring at the houses and the people she had passed. Everything was just as how she remembered. It amazed her that the Organization can copy everything to the smallest detail. A familiar house came to view. A small two-story house with a small gnome statue by the door. She stood by the door, staring at the handle before finally deciding to enter her own house.

"I'm back!" she yelled, hoping for anyone to greet her back. Almost immediately, she heard a respond that made her stop.

"Welcome home, honey!"

Her mother.

"How was your day?"

Her father.

"Took you awhile to get back! How's baseball practice?"

Sora.

She didn't know why, but tears started to come out from her eyes.

"H-Hey! Are you crying? Was practice really that bad?" Sora came to her, staring at her worriedly. "I'm positive you guys can win the next game! So, don't stress over it, okay?" he grinned, ruffling his sister's hair.

Hikari threw herself at her brother, wrapping her arms around him tightly.

"Whoa!" Sora stumbled backwards, but he quickly balanced himself. "You're never this hug-y. Must be a really tough day." He returned the hug.

Hikari released the hug. She wiped the tears away from her eyes and grinned happily. "Yeah…"

"Well, we have some ice cream! Let's eat!" Sora cheered happily as he made his way to the fridge.

"Not until dinner, Sora." Their mother chided.

' _I don't care if this is only a memory… it feels so real…'_

" _Hikari."_

"Awww… C'mon mom! Just a scoop? _Pretty_ please?"

Hikari laughed.

' _I never want it to end.'_

" _Hikari!"_

Hikari snapped her eyes wide open. She quickly turned around and her eyes stared at the girl standing a few feet away from her.

"N-Naminé?!" Hikari shouted out. "Oh gosh! I'm so sorry! I just—I was going to ask where—I'm sorry!" she spluttered over her own words, trying to apologize to the blonde.

"You have to snap out of it!" Naminé said, folding her hands in front of her chest. "None of these are real…" she said loud enough for the girl to hear.

"I know, but…" Hikari trailed off, glancing over her shoulder to look at her family. "Even though it's fake… this is just like how I wanted everything to be…" she admitted.

"Are you okay with it? Living in a lie? Please, Hikari, don't let the shadows of your memories deceive you." Naminé walked closer to the brunette and took her right hand, squeezing it firmly. "Don't let it distract you from what's truly important to you."

"Sora…" Hikari whispered, turning back to look at her brother. "You're right… this isn't the real Sora… I won't let the organization win!"

Her eyes widened when her brother or parents were no longer in the spot where she last saw them. Instead, a masked boy replaced them. His helmet reflected the surprised look on her face as she quickly moved her hand in front of Naminé, standing protectively in front of her. "Who are you? You're not Sora! What are you doing in my memories?" she shouted.

"That's kinda obvious." The Masked Boy snorted as he stepped forward.

Hikari narrowed her eyes. She didn't like the aura the guy was giving her. All of the sudden, a black portal appeared behind the boy and blue creatures started to come out from the portal. Outnumbered, Hikari quickly turned around, taking Naminé with her to run away.

They two girls kept on running until they reach the beach. The sky turned dark and the waves turned rough. It almost seemed similar to the scene where she met Phantom Ventus.

Hikari panted heavily, placing her hands on her knees for support. "Who was that guy?" she asked out loud before turning to look around, trying to find an exit from the world. "Naminé, any idea where the exit might be?" she turned to look at the blonde.

Naminé frowned. "This is all my fault…" she whispered.

"No, it's that guy's fault." Hikari corrected.

The blonde shook her head. "No… I'm the one who should be blamed."

"Naminé—,"

"I was the one who locked your memories."

"Wait—what?"

Naminé averted her gaze. "I'm a witch who controlled Sora's memories and those who are connected to him… I'm not the one who you're looking for. I'm not the one you met. I had to do it… I'm sorry…" she apologized.

Hikari stared at the blonde in front of her. "Sora's memories? So, what Riku said was true? You're the one who made Sora forget me?" she asked, a sad look across her face at the thought of her own friend trying to make her brother forget.

"He could never forget you…" Naminé lifted her gaze up. "The Riku you saw was not the Riku you know."

"He's the clone then?" Hikari tried to confirmed. "…I hate this castle." She mumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose. She turned to look at the girl. "And then, you're… the one who made me forget about Ven and everyone I've met?" she started slowly and the girl stayed silent, lowering her gaze down.

"I'm… sorry…" Naminé apologized again, tightening her grip. "It's not too late to turn back. The Organization will use your memories if you don't run."

"The Organization is using you." Hikari stated as she stared at the blonde with a serious look across her face. "I'll get you out of this."

"No, Hikari—"

"No one and I mean no one messes with my friends." Hikari boldly stated. She summoned her rod into hand. "Fake memories or not, they're still what I remembered." She grinned. "Leave those pesky Organization to me, Naminé."

"Hikari…"

The brunette blinked when Naminé seemed to froze. She reached her hand out to the blonde and she disappeared right in front of her eyes.

"I thought she'll never leave."

Hikari turned around and stood in a fighting stance at the sight of the Masked Boy standing a few feet away from her. "You! What did you do to her?!" she demanded.

"Oh, quit acting like a hero." The Masked Boy sneered. "You're even worse than that pathetic wimp."

"Ven's not a pathetic wimp!" Hikari glared.

"So, you realized who I'm talking about." The Masked Boy laughed, making Hikari glare at him even more. "Jokes aside, I see you finally figured it out."

"That the Organization is making Naminé do all their dirty work? Yeah." Hikari sarcastically answered, her grip around her rod tightening.

"But do you _know_ what they're after?" the Masked Boy emphasized, crossing his arms over his chest. He noticed the look across the girl's face and he let out a laugh. "As I thought, you don't know anything at all. You're just a stupid naïve little girl." He mocked.

"Shut up! You're the one who's stupid!" Hikari shouted.

The Masked Boy chuckled as he raised his hand. "Annoying brats like you should be taught a lesson." He said and something appeared in his hand. A keyblade. The brunette quickly raised her guard as the Masked boy raised his keyblade to the side of his face. "Besides… between you and me, you're the one that's more of an eyesore."

"Says the one who has no fashion sense!" Hikari lunged forward, swinging her rod at the Masked Boy's torso. The boy blocked her attack swiftly as she glared at the boy, trying to see through the dark glass of his helmet. The boy pushed Hikari off and swung his foot to kick her, but she sidestepped away and jumped back to avoid another attack from his keyblade. The brunette landed a few feet away. Her eyes narrowed when she noticed the clothes the boy was wearing were similar to the ones Riku was wearing. "…No way! You're Riku?!" she shouted in disbelief.

The Masked Boy snorted. " _Oh please_ , that pathetic loser got nothing on me."

"Then who are you?"

A dark chuckle was heard. "Me? Well, that's easy," in a blink of an eye, the boy appeared right in front of the girl. Her eyes widened and she didn't had time to block his incoming attack. The Masked Boy thrust his hand out, wrapping his fingers around the girl's neck as he lifted her up with ease. Her hands shot up to grip on his wrist, trying to make him stop, but it was worthless. Her eyes glared at the glass of his helmet as she struggled to break free. "I'm your worst nightmare, Sunshine."

"…f-freeze." Hikari raised her hand and pointed it at the boy's face, shooting a small ray of blue light. The boy released his hold around her neck, dropping her in the process. He jumped back, placing his hand on his helmet as Hikari sat up, a smirk playing on her lips. "G-guess what, you jerk… I'm your worst nightmare too." She coughed, pulling herself up back to her feet.

The Masked Boy let out a laugh as he clutched the part of his helmet that had been frozen. His fingers pressed further into the ice, making them crack beneath the pressure. Hikari watched him as he dug his fingers into the glass of his helmet. He pulled the frozen part of his helmet off and crushed the glass in his hand, making half of his face visible. Hikari narrowed her eyes at his face. His eye was colored in a golden-yellow color that seemed to glow in the low light. His lips were twisted in a sick grin. She couldn't make out his features to relate him to Riku or anyone she knew. It was hard with the metal plate around his jaw line and the dark glass covering his other features.

Finally, his laughter died down to chuckles. His head was lowered down, making it hard for Hikari to see what he was thinking. He placed a hand over his eye through the hole on his helmet and the other on his hip.

The brunette stood in a fighting stance. "Finished? Because this is the last laugh you'll ever have after I finished wiping the floor with you!" she taunted.

"Bravo…bravo!" The Masked Boy grinned. "I'm impressed."

Hikari dashed forward, thrusting her rod forward. The Masked Boy jumped over the girl and raised his keyblade. Hikari also raised her rod to block out the boy's attack. She held her ground as the boy tried to crush her with his strength. She was pushed down to kneel on the sand as her arms grew weaker. Her eyes glanced down to the sand beneath them and in one swift movement, she scooped up a handful of sand and threw it at the opening of the boy's mask, making him stagger back. The brunette quickly summersaulted away when the boy countered her trick with his keyblade, thrusting his keyblade down to where she once sat.

"That was a really dirty trick." The Masked Boy said darkly, but a grin was seen on his face when he turned to face Hikari. "You never ceased to amuse me, Sunshine." His eyes seemed to glint, a dark meaning behind it.

"There's more where that came from… I make a pretty mean sand pie, you know?" Hikari stood up, beads of sweat rolling down her face. "I have rock cookies too, please feel free to taste them." She spat out.

"Now, that's not the way to treat your friend, right?" The Masked Boy turned his body around to face the girl, moving his keyblade around casually. "After all, I was the one who helped you become what you are today."

"What—,"

"The reason why Ventus never came back was because he sacrificed himself to save you." The Masked Boy walked towards the girl as she kept on backing away from him, a disbelieved look across her face. "And you know what? Terra and Aqua blamed you for it."

"You're lying!"

"He sacrificed so much and yet, you sacrificed so little for him. Shame on you really… and here I thought you were best friends with him."

"Shut up!" Hikari swung her rod at him and he grabbed her wrist, making her drop her rod.

"But you made me proud. I knew keeping you around would be useful." The Masked boy lifted her up by her shirt and threw her into the waters.

Hikari struggled to swim back up to the surface, but she harder she struggled the harder it is for her to move. It was almost as if something was pulling her down into the deep depths of the ocean. Her eyes stared at the surface, looking at the Masked Boy who kept on staring down at her, his eyes glowing and a smirk on his lips.

She was deep inside the waters, but she could perfectly hear what the boy said.

" _See you on the other side, Sunshine."_

And everything went black.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Riku glanced around, finding the place familiar. The deserted castle and the dark hallways were something he couldn't forget. He was back in Hollow Bastion. Again. The silver-haired teen glanced around wearily. He remembered that he fought with Hikari a few times in this castle. Along with a few more in three different worlds. A sigh escaped his lips. Every time he went into the Basement Floors of this castle, he just seemed to be experiencing the same bad memories he wanted so badly to forget.

His blue-green eyes glanced around in the dimly lit hallways. His ears suddenly heard something. The sound of metal hitting against the floor. And fighting. Lots and lots of noises coming from down the hall. Without thinking much, he ran towards where his ears lead him.

His eyes widened when he reached the Grand Hall. A black dragon was seen in the middle of the room. He immediately knew that the dragon is Maleficent. Back then, he wasn't in control of his own body when Maleficent turned to a dragon and attacked Sora and his friends. But he was ready to stop her this time. He quickly summoned his keyblade and his eyes glanced over to the one fighting against the dragon.

"Hikari!" He shouted, his eyes widening even more when he recognized the girl. He was confused at first. In this part of his memories, Sora and his two friends were the ones who were supposed to fight the dragon, but he didn't care about how things work here. Memory or not, he swore that he will always be there for his friends. "Hang on!" he shouted as he dashed forward, standing beside the brunette with his keyblade raised.

"Fools!" Maleficent breathed green fire over the teens.

Hikari quickly casted a barrier, protecting herself and Riku from the hot flames. She dispelled the barrier and lowered herself to a fighting stance as Riku did the same.

"You think you can defeat me?!"

Riku scoffed. "We don't _think_. We _know_." He emphasized. He turned his gaze to look at the girl beside him. "Let's go, Hikari!" he gave a smirk.

Hikari flashed him a look before sighing and nodding her head.

' _Right… We haven't made up yet...'_ Riku thought before he dashed forward, thrusting his keyblade to attack the dragon. He swung his keyblade as Hikari kept on shooting fireballs to distract the dragon.

Maleficent screamed out when one of the fireballs hit her. She turned her head to face Hikari and swung her tail at the teen. The brunette didn't have time to jump and avoid the attack. The girl was send back flying towards her friend. The silver-haired teen swiftly caught the girl, but he was also thrown back because of the force. The two landed on the floor with a loud thud, rolling a few more times before going to a complete stop. They both let out a painful groan as they tried to stood up.

"I gave you both a chance, but you have chosen the wrong side yet again!" Maleficent loomed over the two teens, green fire coming out from her mouth. She was suddenly covered in green flames. As the flames dies out, a robed figure was seen walking across the flames. The witch tapped her staff on the floor right in front of the silver-haired teen. "Insolent child, you had the chance to obtain power and you threw it all away. All because you wanted to protect your friend." She sneered.

Riku glared at the dragon, reaching his hand out to grab his keyblade. "We don't need a chance from you. We realized the path we choose now, is the right one!" he tightened his grip around the handle of his keyblade as he stood up.

He lunged forward in a surprise attack, swinging his keyblade at the woman.

"Impossible…. No… NO!" Maleficent shouted as she began to disappear in black clouds.

The silver-haired teen let out a sigh as he watched the witch disappear. He summoned his keyblade away and turned his head to face his friend when he noticed she had been quiet. His eyes stared at his friend sitting on the floor with her head lowered down. He approached the girl and kneeled down in front of her.

"Hikari…"

"I'm…losing this fight…"

Riku blinked. "What?"

"I can't…help."

"Hikari, what are you talking about?" Riku furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'm sorry…"

Riku placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "What are you trying to say? What fight?"

"I lost her… I'm sorry…"

Riku stared at the brunette in front of him. "You're not Hikari…"

The brunette stared at him and in the blink of an eye, she disappeared.

He stared at the spot where his 'friend' once sat. "She's not Hikari… she smelled like Kairi, but she's not…"

"Who was she?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

When Hikari regained consciousness, all she could see was black. She tried casting a fire spell, but it didn't work.

"I can't see a thing… Where am I? Is this… the end for me?"

She closed her eyes, finding it useless to open them since all she could see was darkness.

" _Are you alright?"_ a voice, she heard. She quickly opened her eyes and moved her head left and right to find the mysterious owner of the voice.

"Where are you? I… can't see you." Hikari called out to the voice.

" _Neither can I… but I heard you called."_ The voice replied. It belonged to a woman, she realized. _"There seemed to be so much going on inside of your heart."_

Hikari sighed. "I guess… I don't even know what's right or wrong anymore… everything in here seemed to be making me believe that what I see is what I remembered." She said, sharing her thoughts to the mysterious woman. Maybe talking to a woman who she had never met was a bad idea, but she wanted to get it off of her chest. She never had the chance to share what she felt with anyone and this was her chance to spill everything out, even if it was too a stranger. "But they're not… my own memories are deceiving me. I'm… lost." She finished.

"…"

The brunette let out a short laugh. "I guess you could say that I deserved this."

" _No one deserved to live in the darkness."_ The voice was heard again. _"Tell me, what is your dream? Your goal? What do you want?"_ she asked.

"…to have things go back to the way before. I want to find my friends and family... To protect them."

" _Then let that be what guides you back to your path. Let them be your purpose to keep on fighting. Let them be your light."_

Hikari closed her eyes. Her thoughts wondered off to her friends and to her family. Her promise to Kairi and then her promise to find Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jiminy. Naminé and her three friends from the past. She smiled and when she opened her eyes a bright white light was seen floating above her.

"…I will. Thank you…"

" _You're welcome."_

"Who are you? My name's Hikari."

There seemed to be a pause as the bright light began to grow bigger. _"My… name is Aqua."_

Hikari's eyes widened. "Aqua—?"

Even without looking, the voice or Aqua, seemed to smile at her. She said something to her. It was the last thing she heard before light engulfed her.

" _May your heart be your guiding key, Hikari."_

* * *

A/n: can you guys see the connection between Little Adventures and Forget Me Not? :D If you do, tell me in the review!

I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter! More questions are unanswered lol, but don't worry, everything will be answered as the story progressed.

Oh! and tell me which scene you guys want me to draw from New Beginnings or Forget Me Not, I'm excited to know which scene are your favorites!

see you guys next chapter!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Woah! Almost 10000 words! A new record lol! I never knew I reached that far! I guess I'm a little excited?

Hehe anyway, please read Little Adventures to understand Forget Me Not further!

Oh! _IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE_ at the bottom!

Guest 1: hehe we'll have to see in the next chapter!

Guest 2: kick his butt, Hikari 😃

c-guest: haha really? I love that line and I repeated it over and over lol! Good idea lol! Oh! I think so too, I'll see what I can do ^^

Guest 3: we'll have to see next chapter about the keyblade xD hmm probably xD

Lulu9814: yup! I agree! They were adorable! And bad Vanitas!

Guest 4: Woah! Good luck! 😃 and that's amazing! And thank you very much! I think that's my favorite part too! And thanks again haha. Lol! I agree, although there's actually no most hated character of KH in my list, Xigbar/Braig is close to it. I wished so too! Hehe the story's beginning to unfold.

Guest 5: here's the next update! ^^

Amalia Ignisa: Awww thank you so much! I'll see what I can do

SuperSonicBross123: haha thanks! May your heart be your guiding key.

Special thanks to those who have read, reviewed, faved and followed this story! Hope you guys enjoy this long chapter too!

* * *

Chapter 9  
downfall

* * *

"So, care to tell us why Riku didn't counter Sora?" Larxene sneered, smirking when she saw the look across Vexen's face. The woman shook her head mockingly, almost as if she was disappointed. "What's he waiting for? Where is he?" she asked, glancing left and right before her eyes landed on the man in front of her.

Axel snorted, making the man look at him. "He's hiding somewhere to lure Sora deeper into the castle, isn't that right, _Vexen_?" He stated, but there was a hint of mockery in his tone. His emerald eyes glazed over to the look that came across his fellow Nobody. It was almost as if he knew of Vexen's true intentions behind rearranging Repliku's memories. "I supposed we should just leave it like that, you know?" he waved his hand in a dismissing manner.

"What are you fools implying?" Vexen clicked his tongue in annoyance, glaring at the fiery redhead. He knew he had to be careful around him. Axel seemed to know his true intentions to turn Hikari against the trio, though he seemed to be keeping it to himself rather than sharing the information with his two companions. Axel was an unpredictable man. He had work with the fiery redhead for years now, and yet, he still can't figure out what's going on inside the man's head. "My Riku is the perfect replica! Do not doubt one thing about my creation!" he bellowed.

"Aha~! I would've never guessed that! Sorry, Vexen." Larxene gave a short laugh, crossing her arms over her chest. She moved her fingers, her thumb and her index finger almost touching to picturized what she meant, leaving a small gap. "It's just that, there's an itty bitty teensy-weensy little _mistake_ , your creation is a failure." She said in a harsh tone at the end, a flat look across her face.

Vexen finally snapped. "Silence!"

Larxene rolled her eyes, unfazed by Vexen's outburst. "Predictable respond. Men without hearts are so boring." She sighed out, turning her back on the man.

"You're one to talk, as if you have such a heart yourself." Vexen retorted.

"That's enough."

Before things got heated, a dark portal appeared in the white room, making all three members of the Organization turn to look at the portal. A pink-haired man stepped out from the darkness, a smirk on his lips as his eyes glazed over to his comrades. His eyes landed on one of the oldest Nobody in the room.

"Vexen, the simple fact is that your project is a failure." Marluxia spoke calmly as he made his way closer to the cloaked man. His boots clicked against the floor, echoing in the spacious room. "You best not disappoint us again." He continued, stopping a few feet away.

" _Disappoint you_?" Vexen's shoulders shook in anger as his eyes glared daggers at the pink-haired man. It was obvious that he was enraged by the way he was treated among his fellow peers. By status and age, he was supposed to be treated with respect. "How dare you! In this organization, you're number 11! I was given the title of number 4! I would not have you—" he stopped when a blade was pressed to his throat.

Marluxia's lips twitched in a crooked smile. "Tell me, Vexen… Who was the one the Superior trusted this castle and Naminé to?" he asked rhetorically. His eyes caught the way how Vexen's shoulders tensed at the mention of their Superior. It was clear that he was afraid. He lowered his scythe, giving some space. "Defying me will be seen as a treason by the Organization." He finished.

Axel laughed. "Traitors are eliminated! I believe that's what the rule says." He grinned at Vexen's back.

"Who needs a half-baked good for nothing anyway?" Larxene giggled, placing a hand on her hip.

Marluxia smirked. "This proves it. With the failure of your project, you cannot win against Sora." He stated, making his scythe disappear in a flurry of rose petals.

The silence between the Nobodies didn't help with the thick atmosphere around them. It wasn't until the sound of Vexen's laughter that broke the silence.

Vexen's mocking laugh died down as a smirk appeared across his lips. "Pity to be so ignorant." He was confident that his project didn't failed him. The true reason why Repliku didn't counter Sora was because he countered Hikari instead. He was sure Repliku succeeded in his mission to gain Hikari's trust. Even if Axel knew of his true intentions, it will be too late to take the child back. "As you're only able to see the surface of things, I don't expect you to truly appreciate the aspects of my true might."

"Then let us watch as you prove it. As you can see, none of us wished to be suspicious of a comrade."

Vexen smirked.

This was actually his chance to eliminate Sora and lessen the opportunity for Marluxia to win.

"Your insincerity is comforting."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Do you know this place, Sora?"

The brunet glanced over to his friend, shaking his head. "Not a clue." He answered as he looked around the quiet town. It was almost to the point of being a ghost town. There wasn't a single living thing around, but everything was well kept. The plants were green and the streets were clean. The sky was painted with beautiful colors, ranging from different shades of red to orange, almost reminding him of Destiny Islands' sunset. "…I don't think I ever visited this place before." He admitted.

"Wha—? But this was created from your memories, right?" Donald quacked as he stared curiously at the boy.

Sora hummed in respond. "I don't know… But this place does seem really familiar." He said, looking at the empty street.

"Gawrsh, maybe this place is a part of your world." Goofy smiled.

The brunet shook his head. "I don't remember Destiny Islands having a town like this… Even when we had that road trip to the neighboring town, I'm sure that town didn't look like this." He sighed, not remembering a single thing about the place he was at now. But he can't really say that it's not familiar. Deep down, he felt like he had visited the place. "Well this proves it! That Organization is trying to mess with us!" he concluded, hands on his hips.

"Now that's figured out, how are we gonna find that Organization member if we don't know where to start looking?" Donald sighed, his shoulders slumped down.

Sora laughed. "It's going to be a piece of cake! This town's empty, I'm sure he'll stick out like a sore thumb." He said, motioning for his friends to follow him down the road.

It wasn't long until he found a rather large hole on the wall.

"Hey! How about we start there? It looks suspicious!" Sora concluded, pointing his finger at the hole on the wall. Before Donald or Goofy could reply, he ran over towards the hole, peeking inside. His eyes were squinted to look inside. The sunlight didn't reach through the thick trees, making it difficult to see what was beyond the forest. "Whoa… You guys should check this out!" he shouted.

"Sora! Don't go peeking inside a suspicious hole! It's dangerous!" Donald chided like a mother as Sora casually crossed his hands behind his neck. "Who knows what's inside!" he huffed out, crossing his arms.

Sora gave a teasing grin as he leaned closer to face Donald. "Why? You scared of a ghost coming out?" he laughed.

Donald furrowed his eyebrows as he raised his fist threateningly to hit Sora. "Don't be silly! This is nothing compared to Halloween Town!"

"Then let's go!" Sora encouraged, stepping inside.

"C'mon, Donald!" Goofy called as he followed the brunet, leaving the duck alone in the empty streets of the unfamiliar town. Donald quickly followed behind the two as they made their way across the forest. "Gawrsh! What do you think is beyond the forest?" the royal guard asked as his eyes glazed over to the trees above.

"Probably that Vexen guy." Sora said, frowning. He didn't like the way he talked about Riku, it was as if he was some sort of object or something. Either way, he was going to give Vexen a piece of his mind for controlling Riku _and_ keeping Naminé captive. His hands shoved the last branch out of his way and his eyes glanced around the clearing. There was no one there, but a large mansion was seen across from where he stood. "No one's here…" he mumbled out loud as he walked further into the clearing.

"Maybe we should go back to the town and look somewhere else?" Goofy suggested, pointing his finger to the direction where they came.

Sora sighed, taking out the star-shaped good luck charm Naminé gave to him when he was a kid. The exact same good luck charm that Riku has too. "I don't know guys…. I had this feeling… this feeling that I should know this place here." He lifted his gaze up, staring at the rusted gates of the mansion.

"Maybe it's just like your memories? You've been forgetting a lot of things lately, Sora." Donald walked closer to the boy, staring worriedly at him.

"Maybe…" Sora trailed off.

"Feeling nostalgic?"

The group tensed up when they heard the disembodied voice. They quickly summoned their weapon into hand, lowering themselves to a battle stance. They stiffened even more when a dark portal appeared right in front of the gates. A familiar man stepped out, a smirk plastered across his face.

"I'd knew you'd be here!" Sora shouted, his grip on the keyblade tightening.

Vexen's smirk didn't leave his face. "Before we fight, tell me, Sora… What seems to be more real? This place? Or your memories of Naminé?" he questioned.

Sora blinked his eyes in surprised. "Huh—What?! Naminé of course! What kind of stupid question is that!" he yelled, glaring at the man. "I had enough of your games! Let's finish this!" he huffed out.

A laugh escaped Vexen's lips. "Oh, how cruel the memories' wiles can be. In its silence, we forget. In its obsession, it binds our hearts." He said in a riddle. He watched as the keyblade wielder and his friends getting more and more riled up as he spoke. "It's like I said, boy. This city is a memory from the other side of your heart." He raised his hand, referring to the surroundings around them.

"Shut up! I don't remember this place at all!" Sora countered back, ready to attack the Nobody.

Vexen scoffed. "You are already no more than a puppet being manipulated by the memory of Naminé."

Sora lunged forward, his keyblade clashing against the man's blue shield. The man pushed Sora back, making the boy land a few feet away from him. He raised his head, glaring at the man.

"I'm not being manipulated!" The brunet shouted. Both Donald and Goofy quickly went to his side, helping him back up to his feet. "What's so strange with trying to help out a friend anyway?!"

"You fool. That's what you called _'being manipulated'_."

Sora stiffened.

"Purity is a dreadful thing. You should learn that everything has a side that you can see and a side you cannot." Vexen said, summoning his shield away. He stared down at the boy, a glint in his eyes as a smirk appeared. "You do, and so does my Riku…"

Sora's eyes widened. "What do you mean—I knew it! You did something strange to him now, didn't you!? What did you do to him!" he grabbed his keyblade, pointing it at the man. "You're gonna pay! Put Riku back to the way he is and release Naminé!"

"How foolish! If you continue to seek the girl, Naminé, the shackles will tighten, you'll lose your heart...and end up becoming Marluxia's pawn—UGH!"

Sora's eyes widened in horror when a blade-like-weapon went through Vexen's chest. Donald and Goofy voiced out their horror and surprise loudly as they pulled Sora back a few steps into a safe distance.

"Sorry for stopping you at the good part." Axel said, a smirk across his face.

"A-Axel!" Sora shouted at the sight of the redhead. He wasn't that surprised at the sight of another Nobody around. He was more surprised on why Axel attacked his own team member, his comrade.

"Yo, Sora." The redhead casually greeted, placing his chakram over his shoulder. He didn't seem he was bothered by the fact that he just stabbed Vexen in the back. It was as if he didn't have any regrets.

Vexen staggered back, jumping away from the man behind him. "W-Why—" his eyes stared wide-eyed at him.

Axel shrugged, summoning his chakrams away. "Orders are orders. Traitors has to be eliminated." He said, his eyes gazing at his wounded comrade intently. He raised his hand, his middle finger and his thumb touching.

Vexen kept on backing away. "No—I don't—!"

With a snap of his fingers, Vexen was engulfed in flames.

Sora watched in horror as Vexen began to disappear along with the flames. "H-How could you! How could you kill him?! He was your comrade!" he was supposed to be relieved that he didn't have to waste his time fighting the man, but he was angry for some reason. How could Axel kill his own comrade and act as if nothing happened? He didn't understand why. He hated the Organization, but seeing as they just treated one and another like this? It makes him angry. "What ARE you people?!" he shouted.

Axel hummed.

"What are we? I wonder about that myself."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The Flurry of Dancing Flames.

Aside from his given title, he was dubbed as the Organization's assassin.

The one who does the dirty work behind the Organization.

The hitman.

It didn't bother him when he eliminated Vexen. So why did it bother Sora and his friends so much?

What got them so worked up?

He wondered if that was just a Somebody's thing. Since he was a Nobody he has no emotions or what so ever a Somebody has.

The redheaded man appeared into the room where Marluxia and Larxene are waiting for him. He knew that they were watching him the whole time. He stepped out of the portal, an apathetic look across his face.

At the sight of the redhead, Larxene laughed. "Nice work! I say good riddance to that blabbermouth!"

Axel didn't payed attention to Larxene's words. "You used Vexen to test Sora's strength, didn't you?" he asked. He turned his head to look at Marluxia. He didn't receive a reply, but the look across Marluxia's face was enough. "What's next? You're going to use me to test his sister's?" he joked.

Marluxia smiled. "It's not only to test Sora's strength, but it's to test yours also." He said as he glanced over to Axel.

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "Me?"

Larxene walked closer to the redhead, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Duh! We need to make sure you have the guts to take down a fellow member! Never would've thought that you would just do it so casually, like a snap of your fingers." She said, a smirk across her face as she snapped her fingers.

Axel didn't reply to that.

All of the sudden, the three Nobodies raised their head, almost as if they sensed something.

"So, you two noticed it too, huh?" Axel was the first to speak between the Nobodies. He glanced over towards the door, his eyes narrowing. He kept on staring at the white door as Larxene made her way to look at the crystal ball.

"There seemed to be something juicy going on." Larxene said. The blob of colors inside the crystal ball began to spin around, reviling an image of the person who was behind the strange feelings the Nobodies had over a few seconds ago. Her blue eyes gazed into the crystal ball and her eyes widened in glee. "Well, well, well, look who it is."

Axel turned his head to look at the crystal ball. He moved closer to look inside, curious to what made Larxene so delighted. His eyes widened for a split second when he saw who it was.

Hikari.

"Never would've thought that she would be the first to fall!" Larxene laughed. She touched the glass, her eyes staring at the girl's sleeping face. "But I guess you could never judge a book by its cover."

Axel had to agree on that. He always thought that it was Riku first and _then_ Hikari. Sure, he expected her to fall when he learned of her thoughts to Riku, but he never expected her to fall just like that after visiting Destiny Island. Now he was curious of what happened in the girl's memories that made her fall into the darkness.

"Well, this is more interesting than I thought it would." Axel said, crossing his arms as his eyes were fixed on the crystal ball.

"Indeed. It seems that we were so focused on Sora that we did not realize his sister's magnificent potential." Marluxia nodded, summoning a dark corridor. "Perhaps it is time to visit our newest puppet." He said as he went inside the portal, leaving Axel and Larxene along with Naminé behind.

"Oh goody, something interesting." Larxene said as she, too, disappeared into the dark corridor.

Axel was left alone, staring at the crystal ball. His emerald eyes moved to look at the blonde sitting in the corner of the room. His eyes observed how Naminé hands were curled so tightly, that it almost looked white compared to her pale complexion. He glanced over to the crystal ball again, staring at Hikari before his eyes went back to stared at the blonde girl.

"I'm guessing you had something to do with this?" Axel said to the girl, making the girl lower her head even more. The redhead brought his hand up to rub the back of his neck. "Hey, think of it this way, you'll finally be reunited with Sora and Hikari, right?" he made his way to the girl, his footsteps echoed in the empty room.

"I… failed…" Naminé whispered under her breath. Her voice was so small that Axel would've never heard it if he hadn't come closer to the girl. The man raised an eyebrow at what she had said, but didn't question it further. "Even if they come for me… what then?" she said a little louder this time, staring at her lap.

Axel blinked. He turned around on his heels, walking away. "Hmm, I would say a happy ending, but there's no such thing as that, now right?" he chuckled, his back facing Naminé. There was silence between them before Axel decided to break it. "Say, Naminé. Have you noticed? Marluxia and Larxene doesn't seem to be around." he said, glancing over his shoulder.

Naminé lifted her head up, turning to look at the man. "What... are you trying to say?" she asked, her eyes staring confusedly at his head.

Axel flashed her a smirk. "It's just that… well, there's no one here who would want to get in your way." He said, turning his head to look at the crystal ball, averting his gaze away from looking at the girl. He never turned back to look at her, almost as if he was trying to ignore her existence.

The blonde gasped, standing up to her feet. She glanced over to the door and to the cloaked Nobody before running towards the unguarded door.

A grin made its way to Axel's lips.

"Now, _this_ is going to be interesting."

His footsteps echoed as he made his way closer to the crystal ball.

"Who would you save first?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"C'mon guys we don't have time to rest! We have to save Naminé!"

Sora encouraged as he kept walking towards the next door. After seeing how Axel eliminated Vexen, he was more and more concerned about the safety of Naminé. That red-haired man wasn't afraid to kill one of his own. The thought of Naminé even being in the same room as that psychotic man bring shivers down his spine. He stopped when he felt that nobody was following him anymore.

The brunet turned sideways, his eyes staring in confusion as Donald and Goofy stopped walking. "Huh? What's the hold up? We have to keep moving!" he said.

Donald and Goofy exchanged looks. "Sora, I don't think we should continue anymore." The duck stepped up, bringing the bad news to the boy. "We should just go back."

Sora raised an eyebrow, "What… do you mean? Are you saying that we should just stop and forget about Naminé?" he questioned, his eyebrows furrowing down. "How can you say that?! Naminé is my friend! I can't leave her behind!" he argued, trying to make Donald and Goofy change their mind.

"We're not saying that… it's just that how can both you and Riku have the same memory of Naminé?" Donald asked as he tried to reason with the boy. It did make sense what that Vexen told them, even if they were from the opposing team. A while back when they countered Riku, the boy was arguing with Sora about the same promise he made under the stars to protect Naminé. "You can't both be right…" he trailed off.

Sora pursed his lips, taking a deep breath. "Then… Then let's ask Naminé about it! That should clear things up! Let's go!" he turned around, continuing to walk towards the next floor.

"Sora… What happened to ya?" Goofy sighed, staring worriedly at the brunet.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sora stopped, turning his head to look at his friends.

Goofy scratched the back of his head. "Well, ya always get touchy when it comes to stuff about Naminé… but before we even came to this castle, you didn't even remember her name."

Donald nodded his head in agreement. "Now everything you talk about is Naminé."

"It doesn't make sense. Maybe you should calm down and think ahead about some of these things." Goofy finished, walking closer to Sora.

Sora lashed out, moving his hand. "What's the matter with you guys?! We can't abandon Naminé just because Riku and I have the same memories!" he straightened his posture, his blue eyes glaring at his two friends. "You know what? I'm going to save Naminé myself. You guys can take a nap for all I care." He huffed out, storming into the next floor with anger.

Donald and Goofy sighed heavily, staring at the door with a worried look.

"Sora…."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

* * *

"Argh…"

Hikari groaned as she regained consciousness. She slowly opened her eyes. She winched at the amount of light that went into her sensitive eyes. Everything was blurry for the past few seconds. She squinted her eyes as her eyes began to adjust to the light. Everything seemed to focus and she finally figured out where she was at.

"…I'm back." the brunette sighed out, pushing herself up with her elbows. She sat on the white floor, a hand on her head as she recalled the memories before she blacked out for the second time. "Right… I remember now…" she took a deep breath, running her hands through her hair.

She encountered Riku and from then on, everything went downhill. She found out that she was talking to a fake all along. She used the card given from Larxene to open her memories of Destiny Islands, almost fell into the illusion of her own memories, encounter Naminé, fought a Masked jerk, darkness and then her talk with Aqua. Honestly, her encounter with Naminé was the most positive thing about the event. Everything else? It was a nightmare.

The brunette let out a deep breath as she closed her eyes. She raised her hand, placing it on her heart. At first when she didn't know the voice was Aqua, she could deem it as a good thing. She guided her back to the light. But after finding out that it was the same Aqua she met—the one who was friends with Terra and Ventus—she wouldn't recall talking to Aqua was a pleasant thing. She was reminded of what that Masked jerk had said to her, that it was her fault Ventus never came back and how both Terra and Aqua blamed her for it. Her memories might have been locked up just like what Naminé told her, but she couldn't help but feel the guilty feeling that washed over her.

The Masked Boy was a part of her 'missing' memory. Maybe that jerk was right about it. Maybe she acted like a total brat when she was younger and caused something fatal to Ventus, Terra and Aqua.

She had that guilt after the Masked Boy mentioned it, so she must've done something wrong in the past.

"May…your heart be your guiding key." Hikari mumbled, remembering the words Aqua said to her. She wanted to believe what she imagined when Aqua said that to her was true, that she was smiling and encouraging her to fight back the darkness. Maybe she didn't know that she was the Hikari that messed everything up. Maybe she thought that she was talking to a different Hikari. After all, there's not only one girl that was named after the light. "Aqua… I promise… I'm going to set things right." She vowed, standing up to her feet.

"I congratulate you."

The brunette raised her chin up, her mouth twisted in a scowl when she saw two Organization members standing in her way.

Larxene stared down at the young girl with an amused look. "I'd say kid, didn't know you had it in you!" she said and Hikari frowned. She took a few steps down the short set of stairs before reaching the floor. She casually walked towards the girl who seemed to be glaring and cautious at her. The blonde woman circled her, eyeing her up and down. "But what brought you back though? You should've just stayed in that comfortable darkness." She said, stopping right beside her to grab her chin.

Hikari slapped Larxene's hand away and moved back. "What's it to you?" she snapped, glaring at the woman. "It's my life, I decide what I want to happen." She retorted, summoning her rod into hand.

"Reality check!" Larxene raised her finger, moving it left and right in a 'tsk'ing manner. "The moment our leader sets his eyes on you, you belong to us. Which means that we decide everything that you will do." She giggled, a sadistic look across her features.

Hikari gave a dirty look at the woman. "That doesn't make sense!"

Larxene laughed. "Oh, nothing ever does in this castle, sweetheart."

"That's enough, Larxene." Marluxia said, a smirk on his lips. Larxene turned to look over to the pink-haired man. "I believe we left Axel and Naminé a bit too long, would you do the honors to check on them?" he raised his gaze, his eyes staring at the girl who seemed to glare at him with a killing intent.

If only looks could kill.

"Fine." Larxene summoned a dark corridor, glancing over her shoulder to flash Hikari a smirk as the brunette tried to follow her into the portal. She threw her throwing knife at the floor, stopping the girl from following. "Nu-uh! Only grown-ups get to use this portal. At the meantime, why don't you try tapping to that power of yours again, hmm?" and then she disappeared along with the portal.

Hikari clicked her tongue and a chuckle was heard. "What?" she said in an irritated tone.

"You seemed to be in an unpleasant mood." Marluxia stated.

"Thank you for noticing." Hikari said sarcastically. "As you can see I'm not in the mood to deal with you guys." She said, lowering herself to a fighting stance.

"Since when have you ever have the mood?"

"Freeze!" Hikari shouted, directing her attack as the pink-haired man who seemed to calmly walk down the stairs as he blocked her attacks. She dashed forward and jumped up, swinging her rod at the man's head. Her vision was covered in red rose petals and in a flash, her rod was against his scythe. She landed on her feet in front of the man before she jumped back, keeping a safe distance between her and her enemy. She was offended that the man didn't seem to try to attack her with effort.

All he did was walk down the stairs gracefully while blocking her attacks.

The pink-haired man suddenly stopped walking when the floor began to shake.

Hikari lost her balance and fell on the floor. "Wha—?! What's going on?" she asked as she glanced around, trying to figure out why the castle was shaking.

Marluxia glanced up to look at the ceiling. "It appears our meeting has been cut short." He announced before he summoned his scythe away as a dark portal appeared behind him. He turned his head to look at Hikari before he threw something at her with a flick of his wrist. The blue card landed on the floor in front of Hikari, who stared at it. "A card will have to do. Enjoy it while it lasts, I have some important matters to deal with first." The man said as he disappeared.

Hikari sighed heavily as she sat on the floor. She didn't know what was going in the Organization or what was happening on the floor above her, but she was glad. She needed a break from the crazy people. She took the card and flipped it over, staring at the picture printed on the front.

"Huh? It's black?" The brunette said out loud as she tried to examine the picture. "Is this some sort of secret bonus world?" she asked as she stood up.

She made her way to the door and raised the card up to her face.

"Alright then, let's see what kind of secret world I visited when I was a kid."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora sighed loudly as he stepped inside the next floor, Destiny Islands. A frown was seen on his lips as he recalled the fight he had with Donald and Goofy. Who was them to stop him from doing what was right? It was the right thing to do to save Naminé. He raised his hand, placing it over his heart. He knows that his heart is right.

"Sora, did you just leave Donald and Goofy behind?" a small voice piped up from his shoulder.

The brunet glanced over to the cricket on his shoulder who was staring at him with a worried look. "I can't help it! Donald and Goofy are such blockheads! They don't understand that what I'm doing is the right thing!" he complained, giving a loud huff as he crossed his arms. "And besides, this is _my_ problem. they have nothing to do with it." He added.

Jiminy sighed.

Sora gave a sigh of his own. "…sorry Jiminy. I brought you along even though this isn't your problem." he said, glancing at the cricket.

"Now hold on just a minute there, Sora." Jiminy stood on Sora's shoulder, pointing his little cane at Sora's nose. Sora stared at the cane with crossed eyes as the cricket kept on talking. "How can you say that? We're friends here. Your problem, is my problem too. So, don't go saying that you have to deal with this alone, okay?" he finished, sitting down on the boy's shoulder.

The boy laughed. "Thanks, Jiminy."

"And that goes for Donald and Goofy too. We're all friends here." Jiminy smiled, looking up at Sora's eyes.

The brunet gave a loud sighed, scratching the back of his head as he glanced over to the door that he entered through, the room where he left Donald and Goofy.

"I found you!" a childish voice shouted and Sora stumbled back when he felt a pair of tiny arms wrapped around his torso. The brunet stared down at the mob of brown hair with a confused look. The small girl—he assumed—glanced up to give him a big toothy grin. "You're bad at playing hide and seek!"

"H-Huh?!" His eyes widened when he saw the little girl had the same face as him.

"Pssst! Sora!" the cricket in his hood climbed closer to his head. "Maybe this is your sister! She has to be! Look at her, she resembles you a whole lot!" he whispered, a big smile on his face at the thought of Sora meeting his family.

Sora stared long and hard at the little girl. "Funny… I imagined her to be older…" he mumbled under his breath. The last time he remembered, she was supposed to be a year and a half younger…. Not ten years youngers.

"Hey! You have a bug on your shoulder!" Hikari shouted, pointing her finger at the small well-dressed cricket on his shoulder. "Woah! He's wearing clothes too! How did'ya make him do that?!" her eyes gleamed in awe when she kept staring at the cricket.

Jiminy cleared his throat before her jumped to stand on Hikari's head. "Greetings! My name's Jiminy the cricket! It's a pleasure to meet you, Hikari!" he introduced and jumped onto Hikari's hands when she offered them for him.

"He talks! And he knows my name!" Hikari grinned as she turned to face Sora who was smiling at her. "Can I have him? I want him to meet my other friend! He'll be surprised!" she laughed.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Tidus?"

Hikari shook her head. "Nope! My other friend! He's tall and cool." She said, popping the 'p'. Jiminy moved from her hands to her head as the little girl continued to stare at her empty hands. "He's the only one who understands me…" she trailed off.

"Hikari… What are you—"

"Well, c'mon! Riku's looking for us!" Hikari shouted as she made her way towards the other side of the island, leaving Sora behind.

"H-Huh?! Wait up!" Sora shouted as he ran, trying to catch up with his little sister. He ran up the set of wooden stairs and his eyes were blinded briefly by the sunlight when he exited the dark staircase. His eyes darted around, trying to look for any signs of his younger sister or Riku. "Where did she ran off too? I was sure that she went here…" he said in concern, glancing left and right.

"Hey Sora!" a voice shouted, followed by a slap to the back, making Sora stumble forward. The brunet was baffled by the sudden action that he almost tripped if it wasn't for the hand holding his upper arm to prevent him from falling to the ground. He felt himself being pulled up into the right position and a hand was placed on his shoulder. He turned around, his eyes widened upon seeing the person who almost made him fall. "Geez, Sora! You must be thinking too hard to lose focus! But then again… you never had that much focus, huh?" the girl sniggered.

Sora puffed out his cheeks in a pout. "Oh? There seemed to be a mistake… last time I checked, you were the one who spaced out a lot." He said and he quickly his fingers over his lips. He never knew who the girl was, so why did he say such things to her?

"…Touché." The girl shrugged.

Sora stared at the girl in front of him. Her eyes were blue just like his. Her hair was brown—although a little lighter in color, but it was close to his shade of color. But most importantly, she almost had the same face as him.

"Why do you have the same face as me? Who are you?" Sora asked.

The girl rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "Honestly, this is getting too old…" she placed her hand on her hip as she moved her free hand around as she gave a dry laugh. "Hardy har har, real funny Sora. Last time I've checked, everyone faked to forget me around two years ago. WORST birthday surprise ever." She shook her head.

"She looks the same as your little sister! Only older!" Jiminy half-whispered, half-shouted, showing his surprise to see two versions of Hikari in Sora's memories.

Sora's eyes widened. "You're right!" he shouted a little too loudly, making his sister jump in surprised. He covered his mouth as his sister gave a strange look at him. "S-Sorry! Just thought of something…" he grinned sheepishly.

"Right…" his sister trailed off.

"How did you get old so fast anyway? You were this small a minute ago." Sora moved his hand to his stomach, measuring the height Hikari from a minute ago—when she was just a kid to the height now.

Hikari eyed Sora weirdly. "…did you hit your head?" she asked as she held Sora's head, checking for a bump. She stopped when Sora placed his hand on her wrist, to stop her from messing with his hair.

"H-Hey! You're just doing that because you want to mess with my hair!" Sora complained, a big pout was seen on his lips.

The brunette grinned. "You know it! But seriously… did you hit your head or something?" she asked in concern.

Sora shook his head. "No, why?"

"Nothing, nothing."

"Are you two just going to stand there all day? Weren't you two supposed to help me fix the raft?"

Hikari laughed. "Aw c'mon, Riku! We were only taking a break. No harm in a fifteen-minute break, right?" she turned to face the silver-haired teen, a hand on her hip.

Riku rolled his eyes, "Fifteen? More like passed an hour." He sighed, tapping his invincible watch.

Sora stared wide-eyed at his friend, pointing his finger at him. "Y-You're Riku!" he exclaimed.

Both Riku and Hikari exchanged looks. "Well, thank you for remembering. It's been like, what? An hour?" the silver-haired teen said sarcastically.

"Remember, Sora! This Riku here is from your memories!" Jiminiy reminded.

The brunet calmed down. "R-Right…"

Hikari waved her hand. "Don't worry, Riku. Sora's head just got hit with a coconut, I guess." She sniggered behind her hand when Sora shot her a look.

"Hey! I didn't hit my head, okay?"

"Again? I thought I told you to stop sleeping under the coconut tree." Riku face-palmed as Sora gave a loud complaint. The silver-haired teen smirked before jabbing his thumb over his shoulder. "If you keep this up, how will you be able to say that you can protect her?" he said.

Sora leaned over to look at the girl Riku was referring.

Before he could even get a good look, the whole ground began to shake as the sky began to darkened. The three of them stumbled and fell to the ground as the ground continued to shake. "W-What the—?! What's going on?!" Sora shouted as he glanced around.

Riku pulled Hikari up to her feet. "Go to her, Sora! We'll check the raft!" he shouted over the sound of roaring thunders.

"Make sure to meet us back!" Hikari added as she left with Riku to check on the raft.

Sora stared at both Riku's and Hikari's back as they left him. He turned his head to the other side of the wooden bridge. His eyes widened when he saw a blonde girl dressed in white standing on the other side. A grin made its way up to his lips and he quickly made his back to the girl.

"Naminé!" Sora shouted, overjoyed at the sight of his missing friend. He stopped a few feet away. He shuffled his own feet, his nervousness taking over as he couldn't find the right words to say to his dear friend. He reached into his pocket and fished out the good luck charm. "I wanted to see you. I've been searching for you for a long time… I'm glad I've got to see you again." He smiled, holding the good luck charm.

"Sorry I made you wait a long time…"

Naminé began to cry.

Sora panicked. "D-Don't cry! It's my fault see? I'm s-sorry! Please don't cry!"

"The one who should apologize is me." A voice startled him, making him turn around. His eyes were wide when he saw the exact same girl standing a few feet away from him and Naminé. "I'm not the one who's is actually here." She spoke, a sad look across her pale face.

"Huh? What do you mean? You're Naminé—!"

"I'm not the one in your heart." Naminé said, folding her hands in front of her chest. "Think Sora… Remember. Remember your true important person." She continued.

 _Kairi_.

Sora's eyes widened when he saw the red-haired girl.

A bright flash of light appeared right behind Naminé. Sora raised his arms, covering his eyes from the intense light from blinding his eyes. His eyes looked forward, staring at the door that will lead him back to the castle. His thumb trailed over the good luck charm. He blinked when he noticed the shape of the good luck charm seemed to change when the light disappeared.

"H-Huh?" Sora blinked owlishly as he stared at the sea-shell charm, a second ago it was a plastic and a star, and now it was made out of sea shells. He took a deep breath before entering the castle, confusion written all over his face.

"Naminé?"

Naminé stood alone in the white halls. She came as fast as she can to stop Sora before it was all too late. She was always told what to do, that her life was always been like a caged bird ever since they found her in Castle Oblivion. She was afraid of what the Organization was capable of, so she complied and followed their orders. Even to the point of breaking the bonds of friendship.

But not anymore, she wanted to fix her mistakes. She didn't know why Axel helped her escape, but she was grateful of his aid.

"The girl in Sora's heart… isn't me." Naminé said softly.

Sora glanced down to look at the good luck charm. "…it's an important memory, but why can't I remember?" he whispered.

Naminé stared at Sora, waiting for him to continue. He had the right to be mad at her. After all, she was the reason that caused all of this mess in the first place. The blonde lifted her gaze up when she saw someone standing right in front of her. It was Repliku.

"This proves it. You forgot your own memories and decided to snatch ours." Repliku walked forward and stood in front of Sora, towering over him as he stared down at the brunet with a look of disgust. He quickly snatched the good luck charm from Sora's hands, making the boy look at him with a surprised look. "You're trying to trick me that this piece of trash is Naminé's charm?" he sneered, tightening his grip around the delicate charm.

"Give it back!" Sora shouted as he summoned his keyblade.

Repliku snorted, raising the charm above his head, away from Sora's reach. "You know what?" his fingers began to tighten around the charm, almost breaking it. "Piece of trash like this should just—!"

"Stop it, Riku!"

"Stop!"

Something seemed to stop Repliku from destroying the charm. His form began to sway before tipping over to the right, falling onto the floor with a thud.

"Ri…ku?" Sora stared wide eyed at his friend. He dropped to his knees, dropping his keyblade along as he began to shake his friend's shoulder. "H-Hey! What happened? Riku? Riku!" he kept on shouting, trying to wake his friend from unconsciousness. He lifted his gaze up to Naminé. "W-What happened to him? Is he alright?" he asked.

Naminé looked horrified as she took a step back.

"Oh, now that's just pretty cruel, don't you think Naminé?" Larxene appeared behind the girl, placing her hand on her shoulder. Her eyes glanced over to Sora and then to Repliku. "Broke his poor fragile heart… but I'd say more like she smashed it, really." She giggled, a smirk appearing on her lips.

"What—how? What's… going to happen to Riku?" Sora asked, staring at his silver-haired friend. He might have been a total jerk, but he was still his friend.

Larxene laughed, throwing her head back. "Oh you're just so fun to watch!" her laughter turned to fits of giggles. Her gloved hand moved from Naminé's shoulder to the girl's chin, forcing her to look at Sora, who seemed angered with the way she was treating the girl. "If it's Riku you're worried about, then don't. That thing over there isn't even the real one. Just a puppet with a heart that this witch created." She roughly pushed Naminé away to make her way towards Repliku.

Sora snapped. "Don't touch her!" he lunged forward, but was quickly defeated when Larxene kicked his stomach. "Argh!" he shouted in pain as he landed on the floor, his keyblade landing beside him with a loud clang.

Larxene sighed. "Like brothers, like sisters. You're both idiots when it comes to this." She said as she grabbed Repliku by his neck. She easily lifted the replica up and moved him around before she threw the replica across the room, as if he was a rag doll. "You're both easily tricked by this stupid doll and the witch's wicked spell. It's surprising, isn't it? Behind a cute face like her, lies a wicked witch." She sneered, placing a hand on her hips.

"Naminé's not a witch!" Sora wheezed out, holding his stomach as he struggled to stand up.

Larxene laughed. "You still don't get it! This girl is a witch! She can enter, rearrange and even create new memories of everything—even things that never happened. The girl you've been trying to help all this time is really a manipulative witch who shackles people's hearts!" she explained.

"Just like what she did with your gullible little sister."

Sora lifted his chin up. "Hikari?"

Larxene tapped her chin, "Oh what shall I do, what shall I do?" she hummed as she paced around the room. She stopped abruptly, turning to face Sora with an evil glint behind her bright eyes. She raised her hands and sparks of lightning appeared before her throwing knives were seen between her fingers. "Oh, I know! How about I eliminate you and start over fresh with your darling little sister?" she threw one knife at Sora, the knife missing his hair by an inch.

"I won't let you. You'll pay for this!" Sora doesn't seem to be fazed by the knife. He grabbed his keyblade, his grip tightening around the handle.

Larxene snorted as she made her way towards the brunet, waving her knives dangerously at the boy.

"Don't!" Naminé quickly stood between Sora and Larxene, stopping the older woman from going further.

"Oh? It's a little too late for the witch to grow a conscience. Last time I checked, this was your fault! Just so you know, I'm in an extremely foul mood!" Larxene stared down at the blonde girl who looked away. She made the blonde girl look at her. "We still have our chance with that brat, so you better do your job right this time!" she shouted as she slapped Naminé, knocking her off her feet.

"Naminé!" Sora shouted, staring at the girl in concern when she fell.

"What's this? You're worried about her? You don't even know her!"

Sora shakily stood up, "Maybe not…" he made his way to Naminé, standing in front of her like a shield. He faltered slightly before regaining his balance. He lowered himself to a battle stance, his eyes glaring at the woman. "I… don't know what's right or wrong anymore, but that night… I made a promise to her with my heart… my memories might be fake, but I know that my heart is real!" he shouted.

"Sora…" Naminé whispered as she stared at Sora's back. A small smile appeared on her lips as she remembered the words Hikari said to her. The two siblings were the same when they said it. They forgave her and tried their best to protect her and save her even if she was the one who caused this mess.

"Whatever. If that's the way you want it, you're going down alone!" Larxene raised her knife up, ready to strike down on the wounded keyblade wielder when a shield suddenly knocked the knife out of her hand. "What?!" she jumped back and looked over to where the shield came from.

"Not if we can stop you!" Donald quacked, casting a cure spell over Sora.

Sora stared at his two friends confusedly as they stood in front of him. "Donald? Goofy? Why?"

"Because we're friends of course, a-hyuck!" Goofy glanced over his shoulder, giving a wink.

"We were really worried, so we came as fast as we can." Donald smiled.

Sora couldn't help but smile before he stood along with his friends, facing Larxene with confidence.

"Have it your way. More pain from you means more fun for me!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari rubbed her eyes intensely.

"Argh… the dust's getting into my eyes!"

One thing she hates more than that Organization were dust getting in her eyes. It was irritating at the same time painful. She furiously rubbed her eyes, trying to get the dirt off. She wiped the tears that came out from the corners of her eyes before she opened her eyes to see her surroundings. She didn't really get a good look at the world when she steps inside. The dusts were already getting to her, even before she even had the chance to look.

She inhaled sharply when she saw her surroundings.

It was a wasteland.

But what surprised her the most were the countless of rusted keyblades around her.

"What… What is this place?" Hikari said under her breath, a shiver went down her spine when her eyes landed on one of the keyblades. She took a deep breath and walked closer to it. She pulled the keyblade out from the ground with both her hands. It was old and rusted. The colors were fading.

It felt lifeless.

The brunette put the keyblade right where it was, staring at her dirty gloves. When she held Riku's keyblade back in Dwarf Woodlands, it felt warm, even if the keyblade was used by a dark user. And when she used Sora's keyblade to try and defeat Ansem, that keyblade too felt warm. The keyblades here were lifeless. Dead.

"How many are there?" she wondered, looking up to look around. It was impossible to count the amount of keyblades sticking on the ground. "This place looks like some sort of war zone or something…" she said, her eyes glancing over to the rocky mountains.

She wondered if she really did come here as a kid. If so, then what was she doing in a place like this in the first place?

Hikari sighed.

"As much as I want to know what happened when I was a kid… I think I'll skip this one out…" she said, referring to the wasteland. She stopped dead in her track when something whizzed pass her, missing her head by a few centimeters. She quickly followed the weapon as it spun back to the wielder. She summoned her rod back into hand and she gritted her teeth. "You again!" she shouted.

"Nice to see you too, Sunshine." The boy replied sarcastically as he caught his weapon. "Didn't I tell you to stay put?" he asked as he made his way slowly towards the girl. "The Master won't be pleased to find you running around."

"You didn't tell me anything." Hikari remarked.

"Need a reminder then?" the Masked Boy raised his keyblade above his head, standing in a fighting stance.

"Please do." The brunette dashed forward. Her rod clashed with the Masked Boy's keyblade, creating a spark between them. She blocked his attacks and kept on throwing her own fair share of attacks. Her rod hit the shaft of the keyblade as she glared into the Masked Boy's helmet. "Why! Why do you keep on messing with my memories!" she demanded as she continues to fight.

"Hmph." The Masked Boy scoffed. He pushed the brunette back and jumped away, landing a few feet away from her. "I may not be a part of you, but you and I are still connected in a way." He answered vaguely.

"…what does that mean?"

"Why don't you ask that friend of yours?"

All of the sudden the ground began to shake, making the girl lose her balance.

"What—?! What's going on? An earthquake?!" She shouted as the ground continues to shake vigorously. She looked over to the Masked Boy who was standing perfectly still over the earthquake. The wind blew the dust and dirt from the ground, creating a thick cloud of dust covering the form of the boy. As the wind blew again, the boy disappeared along with the cloud. "He's gone!" she huffed out.

Hikari glanced up to the sky when it began to crack. Her eyes widened and she shielded her eyes when a bright light shone down on her.

A few seconds passed and the bright light finally died down.

"Huh….?" Hikari blinked when she recognized her surroundings. The white halls of Castle Oblivion were something comforting to see after being in the wasteland. She sighed out deeply, rubbing her temples. "Man… I had one messy childhood…" she mumbled.

"I'll say."

The brunette quickly stood up on her feet. Her eyes darted around the room, trying to find the source of the voice. She narrowed her eyes when a dark portal appeared from her right. She quickly jumped back, summoning her rod into hand as she prepared herself for another battle. She frowned when she saw a familiar redheaded man stepped out from the darkness. He gave a sly smirk when he stepped into the light.

"I'd say, you made quite an impression on all of us." Axel chuckled, summoning away the dark corridor.

Hikari snorted. "What can I say? I aim to impress." She said sarcastically, making the redhead laugh.

Axel hummed. "You know, while you're out exploring your 'bonus world'." He raised his hands, curling and uncurling his index and middle fingers in air flock gestures. He didn't know what was the card Marluxia gave the girl since it was painted black. He was curious about the girl. He met the girl once when he was a teen. She was with a boy that shared so many similarities, in terms of appearance, to his only friend in the Organization. And yet to think that a child that cared so much of her best friend, she didn't remember a single thing about him. "Most of the Organization members got wiped out." He continued, wanting to see how she reacted to the news.

Hikari's eyes widened. "What?" she gave Axel a disbelief look. "You're telling this to me why may I ask?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows at him.

The redhaired man shrugged his slim shoulders. "Who knows? You might be interested, knowing the fact that everyone is eliminated."

"If you listen closely you can hear me not caring." Hikari retorted.

Axel burst out laughing. "Oh man!" he doubled-over, wrapping his arm around his stomach as he continued to laugh.

Hikari crossed her arms, waiting for him to stop laughing. "Finished?"

"Almost." The Nobody wiped the invincible tear away from his eyes, grinning at the girl. He cleared his throat, a hand on his hip. "Wew! You sure are something else!"

The red-haired man placed his hand on the back of his neck, flexing his neck muscles. "Now that that's over, let's get down to business." He asked, staring intently at Hikari who stiffened. "There a few important matters that we need to discuss."

Hikari blinked, "You're not here to give me cards?"

Axel clicked his tongue, 'tsk'ing. "Haven't you been paying attention? Everyone in this castle is gone! It's just you, me, Sora and his friends." He answered and he watched the way Hikari's eyes widened. She glanced over to the door to the next floor and he quickly stopped her by throwing his charkram to block her path. "Na-ah-ah! You're not going anywhere until you answer my questions, Lil' Red~!" he said in a sing-song voice.

Hikari growled. "Shoot."

Axel grinned. "That's more like it."

Now that the traitors were disposed of thanks to the help of Sora and his friends, he was able to carry out his mission freely. He was tasked by the Superior himself to get some answers out from the girl.

"Now that you ventured into your past, tell me something… Have you ever heard of the Chamber of Waking?"

"The what now?" Hikari asked, dumbfounded. She saw Axel gave her a frown and she sighed. "If you really want to know there's a similar room named like that in a show I liked to watch… I think it was called the Masked Rider's Adventures with Princess Star or something like that…" she trailed off, remembering her childhood show.

"…you're kidding me, right?"

"Does it look like I'm kidding?"

After a few seconds, Axel let out a deep sigh.

"I guess you don't really know. Well! After knowing that, I guess all the questions I have went down the drain." The redhead said as Hikari gave him an obvious look. The man turned around, crossing his hands behind his neck. "I don't see why the Superior is so interested in you, Lil' Red." He admitted, showing his confusion.

"Don't ask me. I don't know either." Hikari replied.

Axel waved her off, summoning a dark corridor. "Well, you're free to go. But don't expect that this is the last time you see me, Lil' Red." he turned his head to look over his shoulder, tapping his temple. He showed a toothy grin as he entered the dark corridor. "Got it memorized?"

Hikari frowned. "Out of all the Organization members… I think I'm glad he's the last one." She admitted. She rather dealt with the unpredictable man rather than the crazy blonde or the Flower Boy or even the Creepy Scientist. Realization hit her and she turned her head to look at the direction of the door to the next floor. "That's right!" she shouted.

The brunette continued to run through the set of stairs and white hallways, trying to reach the very top. She panted when she reached the last floor. It looked horrible, almost as if a storm went by and destroyed the garden. The whole room was littered with dead plants and deep crates, destroying the while marbled floors. Her eyes scanned the room and landed on the slightly opened door on the other side.

She walked closer to the room and peeked her head inside before pushing the door open fully. It lets out a noise, alerting the people in the room.

Her blue eyes stared at the blonde girl standing in the white room with her hands folded neatly. A small smile was seen across her pale lips as she greeted the brunette.

"We finally meet, Hikari."

A grin made its way up to Hikari's lips.

"N—Naminé!"

* * *

A/N:

So how was it guys? Did you like the chapter? Sorry it's so long. I guess I got carried away with Sora's story hehe. I can't help it really, his story parts were just too interesting! As you guys can see, I changed the dialogue a few bits. And the timeline and plot of the original lol!

But enough about that, let's get to the announcements!

First, the next chapter will be the last chapter of the COM part!

Chapter eleven will be the beginning on DAYS and the beginning of the new instalment I'll be posting up at DA.

The new instalment will be called _**Hikari's Scrapbook Memories**_.

Which will play an important role as well haha

Check out the newest pages of Little Adventures :D

And I made an Instagram to post wip and other stuff about art! My username is WingBlade1357, feel free to follow me there guys 😃

Well, that's all I have to say in this chapter

See you guys next chapter!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Guys! Guys! Have you seen the new KH3 TRAILER?! I was like, oh my gosh! The gameplay is so awesome! I'm just so hyped about it!

Anyways, thank you guys so much for the favs, follows, reads and reviews!

Please tell me what you guys think of the story so far since we're at the end of the COM part of Forget Me Not.

c-guest: haha thank you so much! Here's another long chapter 😃 hehe we'll find out in this chapter!

Guest: hehe thank you! I thought about that too, I mean, Sora's mind was not that clear, so I guess it's understandable that he's mad. I know right? As much as I don't really like that guy, he didn't really deserve it. Hehe yup! The Keyblade Graveyard! And lol! I can imagine the sarcastic duo doing that.

Urshura Maria: the drama! Haha. Aww thank you so much!

Guest 2: thank you! Here's another long chapter to answer all the questions haha

Anonymous: thank you! And yeah, the ending just got sadder….

Amalia Ignisa: hehe I don't even know myself.

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 10  
Dawn

* * *

"N—Naminé!"

Hikari couldn't really express the happiness and relieve she was feeling. After all the floors she went through, fighting those Organization members and going through her memories, she was glad that she finally reached the finish line and see the girl she was trying to protect all this time… even though she doesn't really exist in her memories. It was weird though. She even went as far as to fight the Organization to save the girl she doesn't even know. That she can easily forgive Naminé for what she did, but not Riku.

"Hikari…" Naminé smiled as she folded her hands in front of her chest. She was relieved that the girl made it to the thirteenth floor safely. A few hours before, she entered her memories to help remind her of what is truly important to her and after she told her the truth, she lost her to the darkness. Seeing the brunette standing right in front of her and not taken by the darkness, makes her feel relieved even if she doesn't have a heart. "You're safe…"

"Should you really worry about her when you should worry about yourself?"

Before Naminé could even take a step forward, someone grabbed her shoulder, preventing her to walk to the brunette. The blonde let out a gasp when the hand pulled her back, holding her firmly in place. She tried to struggle free. She knew it was impossible to break free from the man's hold as he was far stronger than she was, but she has to at least try.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Naminé!" she shouted when she saw the blonde was being held against her will by the redhaired Organization member. She quickly summoned her rod, lowering herself to fighting stance. "Let her go, Axel!" she glared, gritting her teeth.

Axel laughed, moving his finger in a 'tsk'ing manner. "No can do, Lil' Red! This Nobody here is valuable to the Organization!" his lips turned to a grin when he saw the anger in the girl's blue eyes. "She's coming back with me."

"Naminé's not a prize! And she's not going anywhere with you or any of your freak friends!" Hikari's glare hardened. She knew that it was too good to be true on how easily he let her off the hook. "Now let her go, you Clown!" she furrowed her eyebrows.

The redhead let out a boisterous laugh, throwing his head back. "That's really funny! Really funny!" he was clearly amused on how determined the girl is to save the Nobody.

He finds the girl's personality interesting. She forgave Naminé for what she had done to her brother, but she couldn't forgive what Riku did. From his thoughts and opinion, what Naminé did was way worse then what Riku had done. _And_ she was the one who said that she couldn't forgive anyone who hurts and used her brother and friends, but here she is now, forgiving the Memory Witch.

"You really are a hypocrite, huh?" The redhead grinned, his laughter turned to chuckles.

Hikari growled. "I am NOT!"

"Hikari…" Naminé whispered, staring worriedly at the brunette.

Axel leaned back, straightening his posture as an amused look was seen in his eyes. "Tell you what? Let's make a deal." He said, surprising the two girls.

The brunette frowned. "What deal?" she snapped, her lips twisted in a snarl. After the dirty trick the man just pulled, she was very aware and cautious about him now. She couldn't believe that he just decided to rope Naminé with the Organization again when she just got freed from Marluxia's hands. "I don't trust anything you say anymore, Clown." She spat out.

"No need to be so bitter towards me. I'm just trying to help you girls out." Axel said, a smirk on his face.

Hikari stomped her foot on the floor, pointing her finger accusingly at him. "Help us out? You're just trying to use Naminé again!"

Axel hummed, rubbing his chin. "True, true, but I assure you it's a pretty good deal!" he placed on hand on his hip as his other hand was still on Naminé's shoulder. He saw the brunette took a deep breath and stayed quiet. He took this as a sign for him to continue. "We fight. If you could give a decent fight, I'll let you girls and Sora go." He offered his side of the deal.

Hikari stared at the redhead. "For real?"

"I might be a Nobody, but I keep my promises." Axel replied.

"And what if I can't give a decent fight?" Hikari frowned. There was always a downside to a deal.

A smirk was seen on Axel's lips. "Then you'll just have to accept the fact that I'm taking Naminé and Sora back to the Organization."

Hikari's grip on her rod tightened.

"Hey, how about I throw in another one?" Axel said, making Hikari look at him with a glare. "If you win, I'll keep everything that happened here between us. I'll turn a blind eye to everything that you do in Castle Oblivion and beyond. How's that?" He continued.

The brunette sighed, closing her eyes to think it through. "So, you're like on our side?" she asked.

Axel hummed. "I guess… but only when there's no other Organization member around." The redhead turned his head and smiled. "You gotta admit, it's a pretty good deal, huh?"

"What do I have to throw in the deal?" Hikari asked, lifting her gaze up.

He shrugged. "Don't know. You decide for me."

The brunette placed a hand on her chin, thinking for a minute before giving her answer. She can't argue with him. It was a very good deal. If she ever met him again in the future, he would just ignore whatever she does. What should she do in return that would not only benefit him, but her also? She began to ponder harder. She wasn't very good with this kind of things. "If you win… I'll—I'll tell you something I know." She said, trying to be as vague as possible.

Axel raised an eyebrow, tapping his chin. "You gotta be more specific, Lil' Red." He was a sharp-minded man. He knew what trick Hikari was trying to pull on him. She was trying to be less specific as possible. If he does win, she would tell him something really stupid and not important. He has to admit, she got guts to mess with the Organization. "How about this? If I win, you have to tell me the _truth_ about what you know of Ventus. How's that?" he smirked.

Naminé stiffened. "W—Wait!"

The brunette turned her head to face Naminé, a smile on her face. "Don't worry Naminé. I know what I'm doing." She gave one last smile to her before turning her head to the redhead beside the blonde. "Axel, you got yourself a deal." She lowered herself to a fighting stance.

"Excellent!" Axel released his hold of Naminé, making the girl retreat back to a safe distance, all the while staring worriedly at the brunette.

Axel raised both his arms. Flames began to circle his hands and in the blink of an eye, both of his chakrams appeared in his grasps. He lifted his gaze, staring at his opponent with a smirk on his lips. Out of nowhere, a wall of flames appeared right in front of the door behind the brunette, preventing the only escape route from the thirteenth floor. The brunette glanced over her shoulder, staring at the flames with a frown.

The Nobody cackled, "There's no backing out from the deal now, Lil' Red!" he slung one of his chakrams over his shoulder as he spun the other. "Hope you weren't thinking of bailing out, 'cause that's just plain rude and cowardly." He taunted, taking a few steps closer.

"With that good deal? Never!" Hikari replied as she quickly ducked down to avoid Axel's chakram. The spiked weapon spun across the room and it came back towards her a few times. She dodged every single one of the attacks he threw at her. She narrowed her eyes at the man who kept the sly smirk plastered on his lips. All he ever did was threw his chakrams at her. _'Is he even serious about this fight?'_ she thought as she jumped out of the way when he threw his chakram at her.

The Nobody smirked at her before he disappeared in black and red flames.

The brunette glanced left and right, trying to find the red-headed Nobody, it couldn't be that hard trying to find a redhaired man in all black inside an all-white room, right?

"Hikari! Behind you!" she heard Naminé shouted.

Hikari quickly turned around, raising her rod to block Axel's attack. Her weapon clashed with Axel's, creating a spark between them. She held the head of her rod for support, to try and push Axel away. For her, she was used to this kind of fight. Everyone knew that she lacked in power, so they tried to make the best out of it. Everyone seemed to underestimate her skills. Just because she lacks in power, doesn't mean she lacks in magic or tricks.

"I'd say, you have pretty good reflects." Axel praised, grinning down at the shorter girl.

The brunette snorted. "I hope yours are better." She said, making Axel raise an eyebrow. She watched as his green eyes narrowed at the head of her rod glowing red. He quickly jumped back to avoid getting hit by the close ranged attack of her magic. She didn't give him time as she quickly threw her rod at him, combined with a fire spell. Her rod spun in a circle of fire, heading straight towards the redhaired man. He sidestepped away from the attack and watched as the rod spun back to its' owner.

"Playing fire with fire. I like that!" Axel grinned as he lunged forward, his chakrams emitting flames.

Hikari blocked his first attack and dodged the second one, ducking down to avoid the spikes. She dodge-rolled to the right when Axel strike down, his chakram embed to the floor where she once stood. She pointed her rod at the redhead and the head of the rod glowed blue.

"Blizzard!" Hikari casted as a ray of blue light was shot at Axel's direction.

The redhead quickly raised his other chakram to block the magic. He used the chakram to create a shield around him, reflecting the spell. Hikari quickly dashed forward, not giving Axel the time to recover. Axel moved back to avoid Hikari's swings, forcing him to abandon his chakram that was embed to the floor.

Axel blocked Hikari's attacks, studying her pattern. _'So that's what she was aiming.'_ He thought with a smirk as he seemed to notice what she was trying to do. "Pretty good, kid! Pretty good! But having only one chakram won't stop me from fighting!" he jumped back and threw his chakram at the girl.

The next move surprised Axel completely. With the right timing, the girl sidestepped from the chakram and inserted her rod between the handles of his chakram, stopping it from spinning. She quickly pulled back her rod and held his weapon, preparing to throw it back at him as an attack. The girl spun once and released her hold of the chakram, casting a spell on it just like how he would do, but this time with a blizzard spell rather than a fire one.

Axel caught his chakram back with ease, dispelling the spell casted on his weapon. "…impressive timing. I underestimated you, Lil' Red. You got some skills!"

Hikari smirked. "Yuffie's giant shuriken training paid off." She simply said, remembering the times how Yuffie would spar with her. The teenage ninja would always throw her giant shuriken at her and with practice, she finally learned the timing to stop the throwing weapon.

Naminé watched the whole fight with a worried look. She didn't like the idea of Hikari fighting Axel alone. She wanted to believe in Hikari's skills, but it was impossible since Axel was far more experienced than her. She let out a loud gasp when Axel suddenly lunged forward, his chakram knocked the rod in Hikari's hands. He raised his foot and Hikari raised her arms to block his kick. The redhaired man knocked the brunette back a few feet.

"Hikari!" Naminé shouted in worry as Hikari landed on the floor with a loud thud. The blonde turned her head to Axel, glaring at him.

Axel took his other chakram and gave a shrug. "Hey, she asked for it. Besides, this is a match. No rules! The rule _'a man doesn't hit a girl'_ doesn't work here." He quoted, raising his fingers to do an air quote. He ignored Naminé's continuous glare as he made his way towards the brunette. "C'mon, Lil' Red! Is this all you got? I'm not getting entertained here." He taunted, twirling the chakram in his grasps.

"…"

The Nobody stopped right at Hikari's feet, staring her down. He let out a sigh when Hikari didn't make a single movement.

He summoned away his chakrams, when he realized the girl was knocked out. "Geez… this is boring! And here I thought, you would put up a good fight to protect your friends." He said in disappointment, scratching the back of his neck. He turned around on his heels to face Naminé. The blonde stiffened when his eyes landed on her. "C'mon, princess! Time for you to come with me." He said, walking closer.

All of the sudden, Hikari jumped up to her feet and threw herself at Axel, tackling him from behind.

"What the—!?" Axel exclaimed when he landed on the floor with Hikari pressing him down.

"Hikari!" Naminé shouted in relief.

Axel quickly twist his body around to face Hikari. He gritted his teeth as he struggled to push the girl away from him. The Nobody quickly grabbed the girl's wrist and tried to grab the other, but she was quick to raise it and balled up her hand into a fist. She drew her arm back and thrust her fist forward, trying to land a punch on Axel's face. He quickly grabbed her fist and held it tightly in his hand.

With both of Hikari's hands in his grasps, he quickly pushed the girl off him. Hikari broke her hands free from Axel's grasps and her hand quickly shot up to hold onto his hood as her other hand grabbed his sleeve. He tried to pin her to the floor, but she quickly raised her leg and pulled him down. She flipped him over her and she moved back when he quickly recovered, reaching his hand out to attempt to grab her.

The redhead lunged at her and sat on top of her. Hikari's hands quickly shot up to grabbed his collar and pulled him down.

She headbutted him.

"Argh!" Axel cried out when he felt the sting on his forehead. He rolled off of the brunette as he pressed his throbbing forehead with his hands. He might be a Nobody and have no emotions or pain, but he remembers what pain _feels_ like.

Hikari did the same as him, rolling away as she rubbed her throbbing forehead. It was a bad idea to headbutt the guy who has a large forehead, but it was worth it.

Naminé stared at the two on the floor, who stayed still. She didn't know if she should feel worried or smile at the scene. It was such an intense battle when Hikari flipped Axel over, but it was sort of like a comic relief when she headbutted him.

Axel pushed himself up to sit on the floor, panting heavily. "That… was Judo. You know Judo?!" he panted out, recovering from the surprise attack.

Hikari wiped the sweat off her forehead. "…a little..." she admitted truthfully, sitting up to face the redhead.

"And why the headbutt?! That hurts!" Axel complained, rubbing his bruising forehead.

Hikari turned her head to face him. "You said it yourself… _'This is a match. No rules.'_." She deadpanned, quoting Axel's own words. "If it makes you happy, you're not the only one who's bruising!" she pulled up her bangs, showing her own bruising forehead.

Axel blinked before he laughed, making the brunette raise an eyebrow. "Okay! You win, you win!" he said in between laughter. He pulled himself up, standing back to his own feet. He made his way towards the girl and offered his hand for her to take. "A deal's a deal. My lips are sealed." He zipped his lips and threw the invincible key away as he smiled.

The brunette blinked at his sudden change of behavior. "Good to know you're a good sport." She sighed out tiredly, taking his hand. He pulled her up and she stumbled a little before she got a hold of her balance.

"Hey, you put up a good fight, so I can't help but give in." Axel grinned, slapping Hikari's back good-naturedly.

The brunette choked, glaring at the man.

"Hikari." Naminé approached the two hesitantly.

Axel raised his hands. "No need to be wary, Princess. As long as there's no other Organization members, I'm on your side. Remember the deal?" he tapped his temple twice.

Naminé let out a soft sigh.

Hikari grinned at the blonde. "Don't worry Naminé, a deal's a deal. I believe he would keep his end of the bargain." She said, averting her eyes to the redhead with a glint on her eyes, almost saying that if he broke the deal she would come for him.

The Nobody laughed. "Of course."

The brunette shoved her hands into her pocket and she blinked when she felt something in her pocket. "Huh?" she pulled out the item and stared at it. "Huh… I almost forgot about this one." She mumbled.

Axel peered over her head. "Well, well… a card… where did you get that one?" he asked.

"Your leader gave it to me." Hikari replied, showing the card to Naminé.

"Xemnas?" Axel's eyes widened. He turned his head to look at the girl. "Listen, kid. You better be careful from now on. You have something in that head of yours that he wants." He warned.

"What? What do I have in my head that he wants to see?" Hikari raised an eyebrow.

Axel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "You remember the question I asked earlier?" the girl gave a nod and he continued, "Well, he thinks that you know where the Chamber of Waking is."

"What? I don't even know what it is!" Hikari complained.

Axel placed his hand on top of Hikari's head. "That's what I thought too. I'll probably tell them that you have amnesia or something." He simply said.

"…why are you helping us so much?" Hikari questioned, beginning to grow suspicious of Axel's intentions.

The Nobody gave a sigh before he smiled. "You remind me of someone. My friends." He admitted, ruffling the girl's hair. "I hate to admit it… but you kinda grown on me, Lil' Red."

Hikari couldn't help but smile. Perhaps Axel wasn't that bad after all. "Quit calling me Lil' Red!" She laughed.

"It's a nickname."

Naminé smiled.

"Well, I gotta go! See you girls later!" Axel turned around and walked away, summoning the corridor of darkness.

The two girls watched as the man disappeared into the portal, leaving them alone.

Hikari let out a soft sigh before turning to face Naminé. "Sorry it took me so long to reach you, Naminé… it must've been horrible to be stuck in the same room with those freaks… excluding Axel maybe." She apologized, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

Naminé shook her head. "It's not your fault, I'm the one who should apologize." She placed her hand on her chest, her face showing regret and sadness. "I was the only who started this whole mess…" she lowered her gaze to the floor.

"It's not your fault… those freaks threatened you to do it. So, don't blame yourself, okay?" Hikari placed her hand on Naminé's shoulder. Naminé kept her head low and the brunette felt a little awkward. She wasn't really good with comforting people. She turned around and grabbed her rod, summoning it away before facing Naminé once more. "By the way, where's Sora?" she tried to change the subject.

Naminé finally raised her head and directed her hand to the door on the other side of the room. "This way." She said, leading the girl to another room.

Hikari stared at Naminé's back, wondering why she was still so sad. As soon as they entered the room, the object in the middle of the room immediately caught her attention. It was a giant glass flower pod. With Sora in it.

"SORA!" Hikari shouted as she ran towards the pod. She placed her hands on the glass, staring at her brother's peaceful face.

"He's asleep." Naminé began, appearing beside Hikari. She stared at Sora's face, placing her pale hand on the glass. "This is a memory pod… as you know, I have meddled with your brother's and your friends' memories… This is the only way to restore their memories back to the way they were. And in order to do that, your brother and your friends has to sleep in this pod while I undo the chains of the memories I made and gather all the memories scattered across each of their hearts and finally reconnect them." She explained.

Hikari faced Naminé with a lost look. "…you lost me at undo."

Naminé couldn't help but let out a giggle.

"This just means that he's alright, right?" Hikari turned her head back to look at Sora.

"Yes."

Naminé folded her hands. "I'm sorry you didn't have the chance to reunite with him while he was awake…"

Hikari shook her head. "No… this is better… I get to see him again, not just in my memories, but the real one. My brother." She pressed her forehead against the glass, closing her eyes. "Don't worry, Sora… I'll watch over you." She smiled.

Naminé gave a smile.

The two girls went back to the other room since Hikari wanted to go through one last memory. The memory card that she received from Xemnas. Naminé was against it and she was probably right. It was probably a stupid idea to go through a villain's memory, but she wanted to know what was the Organization's leader thinking. If she could figure out what he was thinking, then maybe she has a better chance to stop the Organization from using Naminé and Sora.

"Are you sure about this, Hikari?" Naminé questioned.

The brunette nodded her head. "Yeah. I'm a hundred percent sure." She raised the card to her eye level.

"Alright… when you're finished, please come back here, I have something I wanted to talk to you about." Naminé said, folding her hands behind her back as the brunette nodded.

The door suddenly creaked opened, surprising the two girls.

Hikari stared at the person who just entered.

It was Riku.

"Hikari…" the silver-haired teen said as his eyes landed on the brunette who stared at him with wide eyes. He gave a relieved sigh as his eyes softened. He was glad that his friend was safe.

The brunette kept on staring at her friend, her lips parted open, but no words came out. She averted her gaze before walking forward.

She walked passed by him straight to the door.

"Hikari!" Naminé called out.

Said girl stopped right at the door and glanced over her shoulder, giving a strained smile. "…I'll see you in a bit." She lastly said before she exited the room.

Naminé made an attempt to run after the girl, but was stopped when Riku said, "Let her go…"

The blonde faced Riku with a sad look as he gave a smile. "It's my fault…" he continued.

"I deserved this."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari placed a hand over her heart. Her heart felt tight when she finally saw Riku, the _real_ Riku. She knew the Riku that she met in Castle Oblivion was the fake and the real Riku had nothing to do with it, but why can't she face him? She wanted to forgive him, but something in her heart was holding her back. That she didn't want to actually forgive what he had done.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips before she lifted her chin up, staring at the white door in front of her. She can worry about her relationship with Riku later, right now she has to know what that crazy Organization leader was thinking. She stood in front of the door, her lips set in a thin line.

She lifted the card up to her face. "Here we go."

Her hand pushed the door open and light engulfed her.

She blinked when she found herself in standing in middle of a wasteland with some sort of chained-like-forcefield around.

"What is this place?" Her blue eyes observed the orange-tinged chains around. she furrowed her eyebrows. "…is this what that crazy leader is thinking?" she wondered aloud, taking a step forward.

Her foot kicked something.

The brunette glanced down and blinked confusedly.

A helmet.

"What? What's this doing here?" she bends down to pick up the helmet and observed it. She glanced around and her eyes landed on the man standing across from her, his back facing her. She squinted her eyes and her eyes widened when she recognized the clothing the man was wearing. She dropped the helmet in surprise and relieve.

"T—TERRA?!"

Said man turned around to face her.

Hikari grinned. "What are you doing here?" she was a little bit confused on why he was inside Xemnas' memories, but decided to shake the feeling away.

"Terra… is that my name?" Terra asked.

The brunette stared at him weirdly. "Well, duh, I mean you do look a little tan and you dyed your hair and wore contacts, but you can't actually change your face." she laughed after she pointed out Terra's different features. He was a lot paler before and he has blue eyes and brown hair when she met him in the memory version of Radiant Garden. But now, he was a lot different. His skin was tanner, his eyes were the color of yellowish-gold and his hair was silver. "You're still Terra no matter how much you change." She smiled.

"My name… is not Terra." The man replied and before Hikari even knew it, he summoned a keyblade into hand. An ancient looking one. The brunette quickly took a step back, a surprised look across her face. "It's Xehanort!" he dashed forward.

"W—Wait! Terra!" Hikari tried to reasoned with him. "It's me, Hikari! I know I don't actually remember you now, but you at least remember me, right?"

The brunette dodged his swings. When Terra—Xehanort didn't cease his attacks, she summoned her rod into hand, preparing herself for battle. She swung her rod at him, which he blocked with the keyblade. He pushed her away with force, making her stagger back and fall. She rolled to the side, avoiding his attack.

"What's gotten into you?!" Hikari huffed out.

"Perhaps… you can tell me." Terra-Xehanort replied, a smirk on his face.

The brunette stayed quiet for a moment before her eyes went wide. "Is… is this because of… me?" she mumbled, averting her gaze to the ground. She let out a gasp when she felt herself being lifted up to the air by her neck, dropping her rod by mistake. Her feet dangled in the air as she struggled to break free from his grasps. "T—Terra!"

The smirk on his face seemed to widen before a flash of pain was seen in his eyes. He dropped the girl as he staggered back, clutching his head. Hikari moved back a few feet, staring at the man in front of her with a horrified look.

"Ah—Argh—ugh!" Terra-Xehanort kept on groaning in pain, it was visible across his face as he struggled to stand.

"Te—Terra?" Hikari called out warily when he fell to his knees.

The man raised his head, a tired look across his face. "Hikari… I—I'm sorry." He apologized. The girl's eyes widened when he changed in a blink of an eye. He was normal again. "This… This is my fault… I should've never… Ven… Aqua…" he cried out in pain, clutching his head.

"Terra…" Hikari trailed off, pulling herself up and gathering the courage to walk closer to the man who just attacked her. "It's… not your fault."

"I messed up! He's a part of me now!" Terra shouted as he lifted his chin up to gaze into Hikari's eyes, making the girl stop walking to him. "I was a fool for believing him."

"I—Terra! It's not your fault okay? Y-You said it yourself, right? You're not yourself, you were being possessed by someone—," Hikari abruptly stopped. She closed her mouth and stared at the ground with shame. Realization hit her like a ton of bricks. "…just like Riku…" she said under her breath.

Terra let out a cry of pain, making the girl turn her attention back to him. "I don't have much time before he takes over again." The girl quickly kneeled right beside him, raising her rod to cast cure. His hand held onto the rod, lowering it down. "Hikari. Listen to me. The promise you made. I'm counting on you." He wheezed out.

Hikari gave him a nod. She didn't know which promise it was now, but she was willing to keep it.

"Of course."

Everything began to glow brightly, making the brunette cover her eyes.

Terra gave a smile.

"Thank you."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

As soon as Hikari opened her eyes, she was back at Castle Oblivion.

"Terra…" the brunette sighed out, placing a hand over her heart. "I'll find you guys… I promise." She closed her eyes.

"Welcome back." A voice greeted her.

She turned to the source and gave a smile. "Axel. What are you doing here? I thought you have something you have to do?" she asked.

The redhaired man shrugged his shoulders, stepping out of the portal. "Just finished my work and thought I could squeeze in a visit to see how Lil' Red is doing." He answered casually.

"I feel so flattered, really." Hikari said sarcastically.

Axel snorted. "Seems like you're doing well."

"Yeah." Hikari replied.

"While you're venturing in your own, your friend did the same." Axel informed, walking towards the door.

Hikari blinked. "Riku?" she tilted her head. She thought that he had finished his share of floors. She thought that she was the only one who had to deal with an extra card. "Where is he?" she asked concernedly.

The redhead blinked at the sudden change. "He's trying to concur his own darkness." He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder to the white door. Not too long ago, she was still bitter about her friend and now she was showing concern. He actually wondered what she just went through to made her change her thoughts so quickly. "Heh… makes me wonder what you saw in Xemnas' memories." He voiced out his thoughts.

Hikari averted her gaze. "Something that made me realize…" she mumbled under her breath, too quiet for Axel to hear. She lifted her chin up before running towards the door, stopping right in front of it. "Hey… Axel…" she called out to him, her back turned against him.

"Hmm?" the man hummed in reply.

"Our deal. It still works, right?"

Axel chuckled. "Duh. What happened between us, stays between us."

A smile curled up to Hikari's lips. "Thank you… Lea." She flashed him a smile before exiting the room.

Axel stood there, his eyes wide and jaw dropped.

He let out a chuckle.

"Nice to see you remembered, Lil' Red."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The brunette continued to ran, searching for her friend. She came across a hallway with someone standing right in front of a door. It was someone with large round ears sticking out of their head. She shook the thoughts away and decided to ran towards the mysterious person. The person must've heard her made her way towards them as they turned to face her. The person was actually not a person, but a mouse.

"Huh?" the mouse blinked, his eyes staring at the brunette. His eyes suddenly widened, almost as if he knew the girl. "You're…." he trailed off.

Hikari panted. "I'm—I'm looking for Riku. Have you seen him?" she wheezed out tiredly, placing her hands on her knees for support. "He's tall with silver hair and green eyes, can't miss him." she described.

The mouse shook his head, shaking the thoughts away. "Are you his friend, Hikari, right?" he asked, a small smile appeared on his lips.

"You know me?" Hikari blinked, surprised to find out that Riku actually talked about her to someone.

The mouse nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted. He quickly turned his head to the door, his eyebrows furrowed down. "Riku!" he shouted.

"What? What happened to him? Is he alright?" Hikari bombarded him with questions, switching her gaze from the door and to the mouse.

"He needs help!" The mouse said, jumping to the door.

Hikari followed him. "Let me go with you. He's my friend… I won't let him walk alone anymore." She stared at the mouse's eye with determination.

The mouse stared at her before smiling. "Then let's go save him together!" he reached out his hand, offering for her to take.

Hikari nodded her head, taking his hand.

"Right!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"—iku!"

The silver-haired teen opened his eyes when he heard the voice. He had been floating in the darkness for who knows how long.

"Ri—!"

After he defeated Ansem and the man denotated himself, he was sent into this darkness.

' _Sora… Kairi… Hikari…'_

"Riku!"

He snapped his eyes opened when someone held his hands.

"Gosh, Riku, I know you wanted to do this by yourself, but you don't mind a little help, now do ya?"

The next thing he knew he was staring at Hikari's face hovering above him. The teen watched as relieved washed over the girl's face.

"You're okay!" Hikari cried out happily.

"Huh—What? Hikari?" Riku groaned, rubbing his head as he sat up to a sitting position. He glanced around, finding himself back in Castle Oblivion. He looked over to his new friend, Mickey, a confused look across his face. "What… happened?" he asked.

Mickey smiled. "You defeated Ansem, but you kinda slipped so we decided to lend you a helping hand." He said, glancing over to Hikari who nodded at him.

Riku turned his head to look at Hikari.

The girl averted her gaze, trying not to look into Riku's eyes.

"Riku… I'm sorry. I really am. I'm really, really, really sorry. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have treated you that way. I know that you probably won't forgive me and that's okay! I understand. I just want you to know that I'm sorry—"

"If you say sorry one more time—"

"…sorry."

Riku let out a laugh. "Come here, you!" he wrapped his arm around the girl's neck, dragging her down to give her a noogie. He drilled his knuckles into her scalp in good-mannered, making the girl whine and laugh at the same time at his gesture. He released the girl from his hold and placed his hands on her shoulders, making her look at him. "I should be the one apologizing to you, Hikari. I'm sorry—"

"I forgive you too!" Hikari threw herself at Riku, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

The silver haired teen seemed surprised, but accepted the hug with open arms. He patted the brunette back a few times before they pulled apart, smiling at each other. He ruffled her hair, giving a smile.

Mickey gave a chuckle at the two's reunion. It was heartwarming to see that the two finally forgive each other.

"Oh yeah! I believe you two haven't met yet?" Riku asked, gesturing his hand to the mouse.

Hikari turned her head to face the mouse, extending her hand to him. "Nice to meet you. Just call me, Hikari. Thank you so much for being with Riku…" she introduced, thanking him as well.

Mickey laughed, shaking Hikari's hand. "Then call me Mickey!" he introduced. "And no problem! Friends always stick together!"

Riku leaned closer to Hikari. "He's the King. King Mickey Mouse." He said.

"What?! Are you serious?!" Hikari kept on glancing back and forth between Riku and Mickey, a disbelieved look across her face. Well, she should've expected it since he is a mouse and named Mickey. Said mouse let out a sheepish laugh as the silver-haired teen sniggered at Hikari's face. The girl quickly snapped out of it and she reached her hand inside one of her pouches strapped on her second belt. She pulled a star-shaped item out, giving it to the mouse. "Then… I believe this belongs to you, Your Majesty." She bowed her head.

Mickey stared at the Star Shard before looking at Hikari. "Gee… you don't have to call me that! Just call me Mickey! After all, we are all friends here." He said, glancing at the two teens. Riku and Hikari exchanged glances before they nodded their head, smiles on their face. The King held the Star Shard and gave it back to Hikari, placing the item in her hand. "I believe the Star Shard belongs to you now."

"Are you sure?" Hikari seemed a little uncertain with accepting the item back.

Mickey nodded. "Uh-huh! Besides, you might need it in the future."

The brunette smiled, nodding her head in thanks. "Thank you…" she placed the Star Shard back into her pouch.

"So, what happens next? Are you two going home?" Mickey asked.

Riku placed his hand over his heart. "I can't—not yet. It's still here. Faint, but I can still sense him. I think, his darkness may still have a hold on me." He lowered his head.

"Riku…" Hikari frowned.

Mickey placed a comforting hand on Riku's shoulder, making the teen look at him. "Your darkness belongs to you. Just the same way you light does." He said. He placed his gloved hand over his heart, a small smile on his face. "Up till now, I always thought darkness was something that should never exist. Then, I met you and I changed my mind. Light and dark. I think they might meet in a way nobody's seen before. I wonder where the road leads… I'd like to see for myself."

The brunette couldn't help but smiled at Mickey's words.

Mickey reached his hand out to Riku. "I'd like to walk the road with ya."

Riku laughed. "I'm flattered… thank you." He joined his hand with Mickey. The teen turned his head to Hikari. "What about you, Hikari? You don't have to follow me if you don't want to." he said.

Said girl blinked. What will she do? She found her brother, saved Naminé and finally forgive Riku. Everything went smoothly in the end for her.

"I… don't want to go home just yet. There's still a lot more things that I have to do. I want to set things right." Hikari gave her answer, glancing at Riku and Mickey with a determined look. She placed her hand over her heart, her mind replying the words Aqua said to her. She wanted to set things right to the way they were. She wanted to reunite her three friends. "And besides! Somebody has to look after the sleeping beauty and his friends!" she joked, revering to Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jiminy.

Riku and Mickey laughed at her joke. "I guess you're right."

"So, I see you found your friend." A deep baritone voice said, surprising the three friends. Hikari turned her head to the source of the voice, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the shady man. His face was covered up in red bandages and his clothing screamed 'bad guy alert' no matter how hard she tried to avoid to judge a book by its cover. She looked over to Riku and Mickey, and they seemed to know the man.

Riku stood up and Hikari did the same. "DiZ." He greeted.

The man named 'DiZ' nodded his head in greeting.

"You guys know this mummy?" Hikari whispered to Riku and Mickey.

The silver-haired teen nudged her by her arm when she gave the nickname to the man she doesn't even know.

"I'm not sure… but I gotta feeling that I've met him… somewhere…" Mickey answered.

Hikari rubbed her arm as she glared at Riku before turning her gaze at the bandaged man. Her eyes stared at the man's sole eyes and she blinked. She had a feeling that she had seen those eyes from somewhere. "…I think you're right, Mickey…. I think… I had met him from somewhere too…" she said.

DiZ remained silent for a few seconds. "Now that you have made your decisions, it is time for us to take our leave." He said turning around to head towards the door.

Both Riku and Mickey nodded, following the mysterious man.

Hikari followed behind the two before realization hit her. "WAIT!" she loudly exclaimed, stopping the three from moving.

"What?! What!?" Riku turned his attention to his friend, worry in his voice.

"Is something wrong, Hikari?" Mickey also asked, surprised by Hikari's sudden outburst.

DiZ also turned his attention to the girl.

"I just remembered! I have to see Naminé again! She has something important to tell me!" Hikari gave them a sheepish look, scratching the back of her neck. "Give me five—no fifteen minutes! It kinda takes time to climb up the stairs." She said with a laugh.

The three watched as the girl went back to see the Nobody.

Riku let out a sigh, a smile on his face. "Now that's the Hikari I know…"

Mickey laughed.

"We should not wait for her." DiZ suddenly said, surprising the other two with his answer.

"How can you say that!" Riku shouted, glaring at him.

Mickey nodded his head in agreement. "Hikari's our friend. We'll wait for her even if it takes days for her to talk with the girl."

DiZ closed his eye. "You did not let me finish. We should not wait for her, for she too has a decision to make."

"What?" Both Riku and Mickey said in unison.

"Sora's not the only one who is effected by the Witch's doings."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Naminé!"

The blonde turned her head to face the door, her blue eyes staring at the brunette who just burst through the door, completely out of breath.

"I—I'm here—!" Hikari wheezed out. She leaned against the door for support as she tried to catch her breath. She coughed a few times and wiped the sweat off her forehead. Naminé waited patiently for her to recover. A minute passed and Hikari straightened her posture. "…I don't suppose this place have an elevator?" she asked with a silly grin.

Naminé giggled, shaking her head.

"Thought so…" Hikari approached the blonde, her eyes staring at her before moving to the memory pod behind her. "…what do you want to talk to me about anyway?" she stopped right in front of the pod, turning her head to face the blonde.

Naminé folded her hands in front of her chest. "But first, is there something you want to ask me?" she asked back.

The brunette blinked. "A lot actually…" she admitted. "Starting from you locking my memories, about Ven, Terra, Aqua and that jerk." She huffed out the last one, remembering how badly she was treated by the memory version of the Masked Boy.

Naminé nodded her head. "Of course. You see, Hikari… You truly had met them when you were younger. All three of them. Four if you include the Masked Boy." She began and Hikari nodded her head, staying quiet for Naminé to continue her explanation. "You were close to them, especially to Ventus. You two were inseparable."

Hikari smiled, "Yeah… I can tell how little me seemed so fond of him. He must've been a really great friend." She said, remembering the memory version of her younger self on how much she looks up to the blond teen. "So, what does this have to do with you locking my memories?" she asked.

The blonde girl sighed. "Do you remember what Axel said? About their leader?" she watched Hikari ponder for a moment before nodding her head. Naminé gave another sigh as she rubbed her arm. "You see… he is searching for Ventus… and he thinks that you know where he is since you are very close to him and Aqua." She explained further.

Hikari blinked, "So, that's why you locked my memories… so, he wouldn't come for me…But… I don't know where he is." She answered truthfully. She really didn't know where Ventus is or where the Chamber of Waking is. Either way, why would the Organization leader ask her when she doesn't even know. She placed her hand on her chin, thinking. "Wait… if you know about this, then does that mean that you know where Ven is now?" she asked.

Naminé remained quiet.

"I do… but now's not the time for him to be awaken." She said sadly.

"…but why?"

Naminé placed her hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Everything has its time, but now is just isn't the time for it to happen." She smiled.

Hikari sighed before nodding her head, agreeing with Naminé. "So… this means that Xemnas doesn't know that you know?"

The blonde girl nodded her head.

"This is great! I'll just pretend to know where Ven is and that freak will have to leave you alone!" Hikari said, a bright look across her face when she thought up the plan. Naminé gave her a confused look and she could only grin at her. "You see, they want what's inside my head, right? And they want you to get it from me, so why don't I just pretend to know and give them some made up place and they'll just go after me rather than you! Isn't this a great plan or what?" she tried to explain her best of her plan to the girl.

The blonde let out a giggle. "I don't think it'll work that easily, Hikari… Organization XIII is not just some group that you can easily fool. The best thing to do is to stay away from them."

Hikari slumped her shoulders when her plan was rejected.

"You have a choice to make, Hikari."

"Me?"

Naminé nodded her head. "I've meddled with your memories and some of them are not supposed to happen. I can make you remember things as the way they were, before you arrived at Castle Oblivion, but in order to do that, you must be asleep, just like Sora." She explained. "Please choose."

Hikari crossed her arms, a thinking look was seen across her face. "But that means that I would forget everything that happened in Castle Oblivion, right?" she questioned and the girl nodded. "Then no way am I going to sleep! There's so many things that happened here that I don't want to forget. If I sleep and forget everything that happens here… then Axel's deal won't work and I never forgave Riku or I will forget about you and Mickey and everyone else. There's just no way I'm going to forget this. Is there a way for me to keep both sides of the memories?' she smiled.

Naminé seemed surprised with Hikari's answer. "Yes. There is. Take my hand." She reached out her hand and Hikari took them, giving a gentle squeeze. "This might be a little…overwhelming so please bear with it for a minute."

The brunette nodded. Pain struck her head when everything came back to her. About her childhood, about her mysterious past with Ventus, Terra and Aqua. She sat down to the floor with Naminé as she kept a firm squeeze to support her.

" _Thank you for everything. I'll see you later, Hikari."_

"Ven…" Hikari whispered as tears rolled down her cheeks, remembering the bitter partway with the blond. "Naminé…" said girl stared at her, waiting for her to continue. "…am I a bad person?"

"Why would you say that? You are one of the nicest person I had ever met."

Hikari smiled bitterly. "I was unfair… to Riku." She laughed, placing a hand over her eyes as the other held onto Naminé's hand.

"Axel was right… I forgave you for what you did, but I didn't forgive Riku. And it took me that many people to realize my mistake." The brunette laughed again, her shoulders shaking. "This is probably the reason why Ven, Terra and Aqua never came back. I understand why Terra and Aqua blamed me for it. It was my fault. It was my fault of that Ven never returned!"

Naminé squeezed Hikari's hand comfortingly. "Hikari… it's not your fault. It never was."

The brunette lifted her chin up, gazing into Naminé pale blue eyes. "Then why did they appear in my memories? Didn't you put them there to make me realize my mistake?"

Naminé shook her head. "No. I didn't want to put them in those card in the first place since it was too risky… but… do you remember the spell Terra casted on you?" she asked and Hikari nodded. "When you were trying to figure out whether or not to forgive Riku, your heart called out to them. You seek for their guidance to lead you back to the light." She finished with a smile.

"Hikari, you are connected. More than you know."

The brunette sniffled, giving Naminé her best grin.

"Thank you."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Sorry I'm late!"

"So, you decided not to sleep."

Hikari shrugged at the bandaged man. "Nah, I like sleeping, but sleeping for that long kinda gets to me 'ya know?" she said as she approached the three with her hands crossed behind her neck. She turned her head to face Riku and he gave her a smile. When she turned her head to Mickey, he also gave her a smile. And then when she turned her head to DiZ, he gave her nothing. "Uh… what's with the smiles? Did DiZ make a joke about me while I was gone or something?" she joked.

Riku cleared his throat. "…we kind of overheard your conversation with Naminé."

"O-Oh…"

"Only the part when she made you choose between to sleep or not! After than we didn't hear anything else! We just wanted to check up on you since you took so long." Riku quickly defended, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. He really didn't mean to eavesdrop, but he was worried.

"Yup! And we're glad that you decided to stay awake and be with us." Mickey laughed.

Hikari turned to the mouse King, staring at him. She played back to what Naminé had said to her.

" _Wait—so I've met Mickey and Minnie when I was little?! Why didn't they recognize me?"_

" _They do. They just think that you forgot since you were so young back then."_

" _Oh…"_

" _Hikari… I suggest that you pretend to never met them when you were little. The Organization is still after you and if you do this, they will be convinced that you really didn't remember everything from when you were a child."_

" _Okay then. As you say, Namin_ _é_ _."_

"I'm glad too." Hikari answered the mouse, a grin across her face. Her eyes stared at the black coat Mickey was wearing and then to the black coat that Riku was wearing as well. The design was exactly like the Organization's coat. "W-Why are you guys wearing the Organization's coat?" she pointed her finger at them.

"The Organization will hunt them down, but as long as they wore their coat, it will render the Organization's eyes and noses useless. They also wear it for protection from the darkness." DiZ explained, earning a slow nod from the brunette. "For you, there is no need since the Organization has no use of you now. They still think your relationship with Riku has not been settled." He said.

Hikari blinked. "…that's right! Everyone in this castle is eliminated except for Axel and the last time I saw him was when I still haven't forgiven Riku yet!" she exclaimed, grinning. It was lie. Axel knew that she made up with Riku, but with the deal between them. She was sure that he will keep it a secret from the Organization.

DiZ nodded his head. "But for you to be around Riku and Mickey, you will need one as well."

"Here you go," As if on cue, Riku handed her a black coat as well. She held the coat up and examined it before putting it on. "You have to admit… they're comfy to go around with." He joked, smiling as he crossed his arms.

"Hmm, I guess."

"Hikari, can I ask you something?" Mickey asked as Hikari exchanged glances with Riku. She nodded and kneeled down in front of the King. "What do you think of becoming a keyblade wielder?" he summoned his keyblade and held it out for Hikari to hold.

"W…What?" she blinked owlishly.

Mickey smiled. "You've proven yourself that you have a strong heart. You wished to protect those dear to you and that is what I call a keyblade wielder."

Hikari glanced over to Riku, who nodded his head, gesturing for her to hold Mickey's keyblade.

"I… I… All this time, my heart is not strong. I was always wavering on my decisions and I never really believed in myself. I always need someone to guide me." Hikari closed her eyes, earning a look of concern from both Riku and Mickey. A few seconds later, she opened her eyes, a determined look across them. "But I've learned that a weak heart can grow stronger. If I want to protect Sora and everyone else, I have to become stronger… not only in strength, but my heart also."

"Hikari…" Riku smiled.

Mickey nodded his head and Hikari reached her hand out, holding the keyblade by the handle. The keyblade felt warm in her hands, different from the one at the keyblade graveyard. The keyblade didn't disappear when Mickey released his hold on the shaft. It remained in Hikari's grasps.

"This proves it! The keyblade choose you!" Mickey said in joy.

Hikari smiled and she gave the keyblade back to Mickey.

Riku placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Welcome to the party." He laughed.

"Thanks!"

The four of them exited the castle, walking back towards the grassy field. The brunette walked in the middle of Riku and Micky, her hands crossed behind her head, enjoying the walk. The sun was finally setting in the area. It was good to feel the sun again after being trapped in the castle for who knows how long.

"Man… that was one heck of an adventure!" Hikari sighed out, stretching her arms above her head. "Never would've thought that going through all those floors would be this tiring!" she said.

Riku snorted. "You're tired? I had to go through twenty-six floors to reach the top. You just had to go through thirteen." He remarked, shoving Hikari away playfully.

Hikari laughed, stopping for a few seconds, watching Riku and Mickey walk ahead of her. "Hey Riku!" she shouted.

"Piggy back ride!"

The silver-haired teen didn't have time to turn around when he suddenly felt someone pounced on his back. He almost fell forward, but he quickly regained his balance. He placed his hands under the girl's knee, supporting her weight as she continues to perch on his back.

"Hikari—you're heavy!" Riku complained as he pretended to struggle with Hikari on his back.

"Hey! You're heavier than me!" Hikari shouted her own complain.

Mickey laughed at the scene and soon after, Riku and Hikari joined in.

"Alright, alright, piggy back ride." Riku gave in, a smile on his face.

Hikari grinned. "Don't worry, we'll take turns giving piggy back rides!"

All of the sudden, DiZ came to a stop in the middle of the cross. He turned around to face the three, his arms behind his back.

"What are you making me choose now?" Riku asked, staring at the man.

Hikari slipped down from Riku's back, standing beside him.

DiZ glanced over to the left, "Between the road to light," he glanced over to the right. "And the road to darkness."

Riku smirked. "Neither suits me." He walked passed by the man to the middle road.

Both Hikari and Mickey exchanged surprised looks.

"Do you mean the twilight road to nightfall?"

"No. It's the road to dawn."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: An update :D haha! I should be studying, but I need some time to let go all of my stress. Oh yeah!

Welcome to the DAYS part of Forget Me Not!

I'm planning to change the cover and I've already started it! I just need to finish lineart-ing, coloring, and all that lol

Oh yeah! AFTER you guys finished reading this chapter, go to my deviant art account and search for the first **Hikari's Scrapbook Entry**! Only read it after reading this chapter, kay? So no spoilers for this chapter is leaked haha

Tell me what you guys think of the first scrapbook/diary entry

Oh and another thing, I've opened as Ask Blog about Hikari. you guys can asked anything you want to her and she'll answer them the best as she can. If you want to ask her a question, please go to the Tumblr Ask Blog. Everyone can asked ;D

It's at www. askhikari. tumblr. com (remove the spaces)

I had a few questions piled up, so it might take a while haha

Special thank you for those who have read, reviewed, faved and followed this story! You guys are awesome!

c-guest: thank you so much! I'll try my best to make that scene possible! :)

Anonymous: Hmm… I planned to name her keyblade Final Embrace, but I don't know… any suggestions? And thanks!

Ian12091995: Yup! Lol

Guest: I know right? Everything was fantastic! We just have to wait for D23 next month haha. And thank you so much!

Lulu9814: Thank you so much! And yeah, she has come this far hehe

Gamergirl: aww thank you so much! Hehe it's alright, thank you so much though!

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 11  
Starseeker

* * *

"C'mon, Hikari! Is this all you got?"

 _Smack_

"Hah! You ain't seen nothing yet!"

 _Thwack_

 _Crack_

"Oh, come on! This is the fifth time!"

Riku laughed when Hikari's 'keyblade' has fallen apart yet again.

"Hey! Don't laugh!" Hikari shouted at her friend, pointing her finger accusingly at him. "It's your fault that my keyblade keeps on breaking!"

The silver-haired teen snorted. "Really?"

"Duh! You're the one who keeps on using your 'super strength' to destroy my keyblade!" Hikari air quoted, moving her fingers to make a pair of quotation marks.

Riku rolled his eyes, a smile on his face. "How about we take a break?" he suggested, jerking his thumb over his shoulder to point at the stairs. He watched as Hikari picks up the pieces of the keyblade and carried them in her arms as she made her way towards him. He waited for her to reach him before they both continued their way to the stairs. They both sat down on the steps, facing the world's end.

There was a roll of duct tape beside them. The silver-haired teen watched as his friend pulled the end of the tape and stick it between the broken joints. The sounds of the tape being pulled was heard as the brunette kept on wrapping the tape around. From the amount of duct tape that she used, you could say that it's almost made from it. After connecting the joints back, she teared the tape and raised her keyblade up high.

"Done! Good as new!" Hikari chirped happily.

Riku chuckled at his friend's behavior. "You know… You don't have to make it on your own. The three fairies can help you with it." he said, leaning forward to rest his arms on his knees.

Hikari lowered the wooden keyblade and placed it on her lap. "No way. I appreciate their offer but…" she stared at the keyblade's structure.

It wasn't actually a keyblade to begin with. It was a handmade wooden keyblade. It was a simple one. Just a few pieces of wood nailed together to recreate Sora's keyblade, only less shiny and colorful and grand. Riku, Mickey, Naminé and even the Master and the three fairies offered to help her make her training keyblade. She insisted on making it herself and ended up making it poorly, but she was so proud of it.

"I kind of want to do it myself, you know? By hand? It kinda makes it more special." She grinned, summoning the wooden keyblade away before turning to Riku.

Riku shook his head, a small laugh escaped his lips. "Leave it to you to make everything more sappy and emotional." He pulled Hikari's hood up without her knowing and held it over her eyes.

Hikari laughed, shoving Riku away playfully as she pulled her hood down.

It was natural for a new keyblade wielder to struggle with summoning their own keyblade at the first few weeks of training.

During the past few weeks, they had been living with the powerful sorcerer and ex-keyblade wielder, Master Yen Sid. She kind of half expected the old Master to be grouchy and the typical grandpa stereotype, but she was surprised to find him so welcoming to them. He offered them shelter and everything a person needs to live. He accepted Naminé and treated her as if she is a Somebody too.

Somebodies and Nobodies. She learned what the terms were. Somebodies are human while Nobodies don't fall into the category. They were empty shells, created when strong-willed people lost their hearts. Kind of like the other part of the Heartless. And people with the strongest wills are able to retain human form when they became Nobodies, like Organization XIII and Naminé for example. They were rejected by both light and darkness. Instead, they were forced to walk the realm between and doomed to a state of non-existence.

The most thing that shocked her was that they were incapable of experiencing emotions. She was a little confused by this since she was pretty sure everyone has emotions and feelings. DiZ told her that everything they display was all an act. In order to pretend that they have 'hearts', they act relying on their 'memories' of their time as humans.

But they can't actually feel anything.

They way DiZ explained it, he made it seemed like he hates the Nobodies with a passion.

Not all Nobodies are bad. Just look at Naminé and maybe Axel for example.

Speaking of Axel…

She never saw him again ever since Castle Oblivion.

A finger poked her cheek, breaking her train of thoughts. "Why the serious face? It doesn't really suit you." Her silver-haired friend joked, a teasing look across his face.

Hikari laughed, shoving Riku's hand away from her face. "Nothing…" she replied and stood up, stretching her hands above her head as she faced him. "Well, let's see what Naminé is up to!" she grinned.

Riku blinked at how fast Hikari changed before nodding his head. He pushed himself up and the two entered the Mysterious Tower. The tower lived up to its' name. From the outside, it looks so small and old, but it was a lot more spacious inside. It would take them some time to reach Yen Sid's study because of the stairs and doors. It also didn't help that they can't use the dark corridor because of the magic casted around the tower. Which makes it safe from the Organization. Unless of course, they're stupid enough to walk through the front door, but she doubts they would actually do that.

Minutes passed and they finally reached the door to the study.

Hikari grabbed the handle and pulled the door open. "After you, your highness." She bowed down, moving her hand around before directing it for Riku to go inside first. A snigger escaped her lips when she heard Riku sigh under his breath.

"Thank you, oh, mighty Sir." Riku replied in the same tone Hikari did as he entered the room first. The door behind him closed with a soft thud and the brunette went to stood beside him, facing the powerful sorcerer sitting in front of them. The two keyblade wielders bowed down their head in respect.

Yen Sid nodded his head in return. "So, I see you both have finished sparring for today." He said, stroking his beard.

Hikari grinned. "Yup! We decided to call it for the day." She said, crossing her hands behind her head.

Master Yen Sid is a stern looking man. He was almost frowning all the time that it kind of made Hikari nervous at first. When she and Riku were introduced to the retired keyblade master, they were really stiff and nervous, but after training under his guidance, they learned that he is a really knowledgeable and wise man. Sometime, he would join Mickey to watch the spar between Riku and Hikari and gave them advice to correct their mistake.

The brunette thought the retired keyblade master didn't accept her as his former student's disciple, but he accepted without a doubt. He believes that if she works hard enough, she could one day achieve her dream of becoming a keyblade master. He too believed that Riku can become a keyblade master, but he declined, saying that he wasn't fit to be a master. She didn't understand why he would say that though. Riku was a natural at using the keyblade, way more than she is.

"I see, have you heard of any news of Mickey and DiZ?" Yen Sid asked.

Riku shook his head. "No, nothing…" he answered.

Hikari averted her eyes to the window behind the old man, staring at the red skies. Both Mickey and DiZ had been gone for days. They told them that they would leave, but they didn't expect it to be days. All the time she was in the Mysterious Tower, she rarely seen DiZ around. She could even count the many times she had seen him in the tower with her fingers. Sure, he wasn't the nicest man in the world, but she was worried about him.

Yen Sid closed his eyes and he was silent for the few passing seconds. "It cannot be helped. We shall wait until they return on their own will." He said before directing his hand to the door to his left. "You both are dismissed. Your friend is waiting for you." He smiled a little.

"Thank you, Master." Both Riku and Hikari said in unison, bowing in respect.

The two young keyblade wielders walked towards the door and pushed the door open, only to find a floating tea pot right above their head. The two blinked before observing what was happening inside the room. It was a fairly large room. There was also another room, right beside the cabinets. It was spacious and the ceiling was high, a perfect place to fit four memory pods. The two teens stepped inside, staring at the little tea party inside the room.

"Oh! Come! Come! Come join us, dears!" the green-dressed fairy, Fauna, greeted the two teens with a giggle. She held a teacup up to her lips, her pinky raised elegantly.

The blue-dressed fairy, Merryweather, nodded her head. "Oh yes! There's plenty of room for you to join!" she continued and raised her wand, using magic to make two more chairs appear, the cushions were colored blue though.

The last fairy, Flora, laughed before she flew towards the two, urging them to come and sit down. "Do come and join us for tea. You both must be exhausted from training."

Riku and Hikari exchanged glances before shrugging their shoulders.

"Seems like you're having fun here, Naminé." Riku said as he pulled the chair to sit down.

Naminé gave a smile. "It's a nice change." She placed the teacup down on the saucer and folded her hands neatly on her lap. "So, how was training?" she asked, glancing at the two.

Hikari sat down, taking a cookie from the plate. "It was going great! Until… Riku cheated." She muttered, puckering her lips out in a childish pout as she gave the silver-haired the stink eye.

"I didn't cheat." Riku took a sip from his tea, not even glancing at her direction. He placed the cup down and ate his share of cake. "You're the one who decided to do all those fancy moves and break your keyblade _again_." He retorted.

"Again?" Naminé stifled a giggle behind her hand.

Hikari placed her forehead on the table, groaning. "Not you too, Naminé…" she lifted her gaze up, resting her chin on the surface. She puffed out her cheeks when the three fairies also laugh. She took a bite from the cookie and sat up straight to chew. "Bwut at lwest I masutward the spwel abbwack Mikey twaght me." She said.

"Manners, my dear." Fauna reminded.

Hikari nodded before she swallowed. "Well, at least I mastered the spell attack Mickey taught me!" she grinned happily, happy that she finally achieved something right. It was a Fire and Blizzard based attack. The attack depends on how the user used it. For Mickey, he dashed forward and attack with Blizzard before he dashed backwards and attack with Fire. He said that she didn't have to follow him. She can put in her own moves. She whirls forward with Blizzard and then whirls backwards with Fire. The key is actually how fast the user can switch the magic abilities and how fast they can cast it. "Took me a few tries, but I did it!" she grinned.

Riku snorted. "You almost burn my coat."

"Keyword: almost."

"You practiced it _on me_."

"Practice makes perfect!"

" _On me_?"

Naminé giggled, making Riku and Hikari stop bickering to look at her. "You two are just like brothers and sisters."

Riku and Hikari exchanged glanced before laughing.

"I guess!"

Their laughter died down and everyone continued to chat and eat happily. Hikari glanced over to the door near the cabinets. It was the room Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jiminy were in. If it weren't for Flora, Fauna and Merryweather's magic, they wouldn't even get the pods to the Mysterious Tower, or even to move. After she finished training or sparring, she would always head straight to that room where Naminé would also be most of the day. She would accompany the Nobody every minute she can. Riku would also sometime join.

"Hey, I'm gonna check on Sora and the others, kay?" Hikari said as she stood up, pointing her finger at the direction of the door.

Riku stared at his friends before nodding his head. In truth, he was worried about Hikari's mental state. She might seem fine, but sometimes she would space out.

The door to the room opened and closed.

"I'm worried about her." Riku said, voicing out his thoughts.

Naminé sighed softly, nodding her head in agreement.

"Give the girl some time, I'm sure she would come over it." Fauna said, placing a comforting hand on Naminé's shoulder. "Hikari's a very cheerful and optimistic young girl!"

Naminé stared at the door worriedly. She knew that Hikari wasn't really that worried about her brother. It was the secret that she has to keep to protect her friend. It was hard for Hikari, knowing that Ventus is somewhere in Castle Oblivion, but can't be found until the time is right. She knew he was there, but she can't save him. Naminé knew how badly Hikari wanted to help reunite Aqua and Terra with Ventus, even though she doesn't have a clue where to start looking for them.

"I'll check on her." Naminé said as she stood up.

Riku also did the same. "I'm coming too."

The two carefully opened the door and stepped inside. Inside, Hikari stood in front of Sora's pod, staring at him. Her back was turned against Riku and Naminé, but she knew they were there from the sound of footsteps echoing in the spacious room.

"Do you think he can hear all of us now?" She asked, making Naminé and Riku look at her.

It was impossible.

She knew that.

Hikari turned, a grin on her face. "You know, kind of like that movie? When that guy was in a coma and he can like see and hear everything?" she quickly added as a joke, hoping to lighten the mood between the three.

"…you need to stop taking things from movies." Riku shook his head, a small smile on his lips. "It's impossible, really."

The brunette shrugged. "Hey, we traveled to other worlds and met talking animals and objects! Something simple like that can happen, 'ya know?" she argued, giving her opinion about her theory. It was true. Compared to traveling to other words, magic and other things, it was the simplest thing that could happen. "Isn't that right, Naminé?" she turned to her blonde friend for backup.

Naminé giggled behind her hand. "Perhaps." She answered, making Hikari turn to the boy with a smug grin.

"Hah! Told you so!"

"Don't give her ideas, Naminé." Riku rolled his eyes. "I had enough hearing about her lame movie reference."

"Hey! They're not lame!" Hikari shouted her complain. "You're just jealous that you can't remember the good references." She pointed her finger at her friend.

Riku nodded his head. "Fine, fine, I'm jealous that I can't remember any good movie reference. Happy?" he turned his body to face the two girls, his arms crossed against his chest.

Hikari gave him a look. "That was sarcasm."

" _Gee_ , what do you think?" the silver-haired boy replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Naminé giggled at the two best friend's behaviors. It was refreshing to see their friendship. Ever since she was born, she had to put up with the Organization's constant quarrel. It was frightening to be in the middle of the feud without protection.

The brunette looked over to her blonde friend. A grin appeared on her lips seeing how happy her friends was. When she first met Naminé a few weeks ago, the girl was so quiet and rarely laughs. Of course, she explains everything to her about her true intentions behind locking away her past, but that doesn't really count as a friendly conversation.

"You should smile more often, Naminé!" Hikari said, smiling at the blonde girl. She knew Naminé is a Nobody, but she didn't know whose Nobody she was, she can't help that she is really familiar though. She wanted to ask, but she didn't want Naminé to be reminded that she was a Nobody. She wanted her to feel like a normal girl, just like her. "You look prettier with a smile." She raised her two fingers and pointed them at the corner of her lips as a smile was seen to prove her point.

"T-Thank you…" red tinted Naminé's pale cheeks when she heard the compliment, covering her face with her hands to hide her embarrassment.

Riku burst out laughing. "Keep this up and you'll be the be called the Master of Flirts instead of Keyblade Master." He patted Hikari's back, his laughter turning to sniggers as he gave her a smirk.

"Hey!" Hikari let out a whine when Riku messed her hair completely, leaving it like a bird's nest. She fixed her hair with her fingers, untangling the knots Riku made. A Keyblade Master. That was one of her new goal, besides reuniting her three friends, Ventus, Terra and Aqua. She learned from Naminé that she had the same goal as her three friends. Being a Keyblade Master means that she was a step closer to save her friends. It was settled. She will train harder to become a Master, just like Aqua and Mickey. "There's nothing wrong with complimenting, right?" she huffed out.

Riku chuckled. "Nope, not at all."

"You fellas seemed to be having fun!" A voice said cheerfully as the mouse king entered the white room. The three teens turned to face the newcomer. Despite being a king, Mickey was a really humble guy. He considered them all as friends and insisted on calling him by his first name, rather than 'King' or 'King Mickey'. They were no formalities between them.

"Mickey!" Both Riku and Hikari exclaimed in surprised. It was a total surprise for them to see the mouse king again after days of not hearing from him.

Hikari walked closer. "Where were you anyway?" she asked curiously.

It was hard trying to act as if she hadn't met him when she was little. He played a big part in her childhood since he was the one who taught her about friendship. One time, she slmost slipped and spill about the time when she met him and Ventus at the dwarves' world, but she quickly covered it up saying how much Donald and Goofy were trying their best to find him.

Keeping it to herself was the hardest thing to do. It was a big secret concerning the people that Mickey also knew, but she listens to Naminé's advice and kept it to herself since Naminé always knew what was best.

Mickey scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Oh, you know…" he trailed off. "By the way, DiZ wanted to talk to all of you. Let's not keep him waiting now, shall we?" he smiled and guided the three out of the room.

Riku, Naminé and Hikari exchanged looks before following the king out from the room and back into Yen Sid's study. DiZ stood in front of the Yen Sid's desk. The both of them seemed to be in some deep conversation before they came into the room, the three fairies following behind them.

The red-bandaged man and Yen Sid glanced over to where everyone gathered. He gazed over to Riku and Hikari specifically, his only visible amber eye seemed to glow in the low lighting. He turned his head back to look at the desk after acknowledging the king's and the teens' presences.

"I am afraid I have bad news to tell you, Hikari." DiZ spoke lowly, making the brunette flinched when he mentioned her name. Riku and Naminé also showed their surprise, looking at the girl before looking back at the bandaged man.

"…what bad news?" Hikari asked nervously, not liking the idea of hearing the bad news about her.

DiZ finally turned to face the brunette. "I believe you have stayed too long. Suspicion will grow among the Organization as to why you have not returned to Hollow Bastion." He explained, his hands crossed behind his back.

Riku stepped forward. "That doesn't mean that she can't stay with us. The Organization can't find her here." He defended, disliking the idea DiZ was suggesting. It hasn't been a month and they were going to be separated again.

Merryweather nodded her head in agreement. "Besides! She's wearing those no-good Organization's cloak, they can't sniff her out if she's wearing it!" she defended. The three fairies have grown close to the three teens.

"Indeed, that is true, but the Organization will go after her too if she continues to hid herself among us." DiZ continued his explanation.

Yen Sid seemed to agree with DiZ. "I believe what he is trying to say is that, it is safer for her to distance herself for a while to avoid the Organization's prying eyes and noses."

Fauna mumbled to the others. "He does have a point…"

"Even with our magic, we can't stop the Organization from trying to find you." Fauna sighed out, agreeing on DiZ's idea.

Mickey placed his gloved hand over Hikari's. "Don't worry, Hikari. You can also see us after a week or two! We just have to make sure that the Organization isn't suspicious of you." He reassured.

Hikari gazed down at the floor. "I guess so too… I don't want the Organization to chase you more." She lifted her chin to look at Riku, Mickey and Naminé. "Besides! Mickey's right! After a week or two, I can zap myself here anytime I want! I have the Star Shard after all, they can't sense me if I'm world hopping all the time!" she gave a thumbs up, winking.

Riku laughed. "Now that's Hikari. Always trying to find a way."

The brunette turned to Naminé who was quiet through the whole thing. "Don't worry, Naminé! I'll come back real soon! Promise! You won't even notice I'm gone!" she tried to cheer up the blonde, giving her the best grin she could muster. She knew the feeling of being alone with no friends to share with. She had that feeling when she was little, that is until she met Ventus. She wanted Naminé to know that she wasn't alone anymore, that she has the fairies, Yen Sid, Riku, Mickey and herself. "I promised to protect you and Sora, if I'm supposed to keep that promise, I'll have to be near you guys, right?" she laughed.

Naminé folded her hands in front of her chest. "Hikari…" she averted her eyes, avoiding to look at the brunette's eyes.

"What's the matter?" Hikari asked, frowning.

"You did not tell them?" DiZ asked, making everyone but Yen Sid turn to him. Yen Sid closed his eyes as if he knew the news.

"Tell us what?" Riku asked, his eyes narrowing.

DiZ motioned his head to Naminc.

Mickey walked closer to the Nobody. "Is there something you want to tell us, Naminé?" he asked.

"…during the time I'm restoring their memories, you won't remember them…" Naminé said quietly, but everyone could hear her perfectly. "You're already feeling it now, right? You might not notice it since I've been doing it slowly..."

Riku's eyes widened. "Are you saying that we will forget about Sora?" he asked and the girl gave a silent nod. The silver-haired teen quickly turned to the brunette in concern. It will be harder for Hikari to accept than him since she is Sora's sister.

The three fairies gasped. "Oh dear…" Fauna said, all three of them staring worriedly at the youngest.

"…I won't remember Sora at all?" Hikari said slowly, lifting her gaze up to look at Naminé.

The blonde shook her head. "You will know that you have a brother and his name, but that's it… I have to disconnect the links Sora has with everyone to restore his memories fully. I'm sorry, Hikari…" she apologized.

Hikari stared at the floor, a sad look across her face.

"Gosh… but will she remember Sora when you're finished?" Mickey asked in concern, showing his worry for the new keyblade wielder as he stood beside her.

"Of course." Naminé replied. "All of you would." She said, glancing to everyone.

"Hikari…" Riku placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder.

A sigh escaped Hikari's lips before she lifted her chin up, a smile on her face. "Well, I guess it's for the best! The Organization will have to leave Sora alone if they don't remember who he is, right?" she said positively, surprising everyone in the room. She turned to face the Nobody. "I trust you, Naminé." She said truthfully. "If you say that I'll remember Sora again, I believe you. I just have to wait for that time to arrive." She grinned.

Naminé stared at Hikari with wide eyes before she closed her eyes. "Thank you, Hikari…"

Riku couldn't help but smile at his friend's optimism. She really did grow up to be more mature.

"Say… can you also make my parents forget that I forgot to clean my room?" Hikari laughed, crossing her hands behind her head.

Riku face palmed. He took back what he said.

"Come here you!" Riku wrapped his arm around the girl's neck, dragging her slightly down to give her a noogie. "And here I thought you actually said something cool!"

"H-Hey!" Hikari complained as Riku gave a laugh.

Everyone laughed except DiZ, who seemed to observe the scene.

Riku released his hold and Hikari stared at him. "…before we go on our separate way… I want to visit one world."

Riku raised an eyebrow, but he agreed nonetheless.

"Okay."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

" _So, you're going to leave me too?"_

" _Don't worry, Kairi! I'll come back really soon! You might not even notice that I'm gone—"_

"Kairi~!

" _I'll come back. Promise."_

" _I know… Be careful, 'kay?"_

"Selphie," Kairi greeted as she turned to face the bubbly girl. She smiled at the sight of the younger girl approaching her with a big smile across her face. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

Selphie shook her head. "We were just about to go back to the main island. It's getting pretty late." She said, glancing over to the horizon, looking as the sun starts to set. The sky was almost dark and a few stars began to show up in the low light.

The redhead nodded her head, tucking a loose strand behind her ear as the cool wind blew gently. "…I was just thinking." She said, turning her head to look at the sea again.

Selphie tilted her head slightly.

"You know… about Hikari and Riku… and that other boy." Kairi sighed out as her thoughts wondered to her friends. Ever since everyone returned, they never heard anything from the two teens. Both side of parents searched endlessly for their children and the whole town also helped in the search, but to no avail, they were never found. Most of them gave up the search after the month, accepting the fact that the teens were never returning, but a few people were still searching long and hard. Her included. "I miss them…"

Selphie placed her hand on Kairi's shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze. "I miss them too… But we just have to believe that they'll come back!" She grinned reassuringly and Kairi smiled at her enthusiasm. She knew that the younger girl was having a hard time accepting the truth that her best friend never returned, but she still puts on a cheerful face to encourage everyone. "Who knows? Maybe they're already here, looking out for us in secret!" she laughed.

Kairi joined in the laughed. "Maybe. You might be right!" She replied, giving a smile.

She can't help but agree with Selphie. Ever since she had known them, it was in both Hikari's and Riku's nature to look out for others in secret. She understands why Riku did it. He was the typical 'cool guy' in school. He was more secluded to people he doesn't know and Hikari was the more social and goofy type. She liked to help people as much as she can. She did help out a lot, but most of the time, she never told anyone that she was the one who helped them out.

Selphie laughed. "That's the spirit! Now c'mon! You know how Tidus and Wakka are, they might've left first!" she pulled on Kairi's hand, urging the redhead to run with her to the dock.

Kairi nodded and ran with her to the docks where Tidus and Wakka are waiting for them.

"Took you girls long enough!" Tidus complained, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared playfully at the two girls. "I thought I was going to be a grandpa waiting for you girls to show up." He said jokingly.

Selphie placed her hands on her hips. "Maybe we should've made you wait longer! You might finally act like your age." She teased the scar-faced boy.

Tidus gave a look at the girl. "Bah! Who cares about me acting like my age? I'm just thirteen! Not an adult or anything." He retorted, crossing his hands behind his neck as he looked away.

Wakka shook his head. "Okay, okay! It's getting pretty late, we should all head back." He suggested, untying his boat from the dock. He watched as Tidus jumped into his wooden boat as Selphie went inside her boat in a more old-fashioned manner. The redhaired teen walked over towards Kairi, helping the girl untie her boat. "Let me help." He offered, kneeling beside the girl.

Kairi smiled. "Thanks, Wakka."

The teen nodded his head. "We're all worried about them, Kairi." He suddenly said out of the blue, his eyes still on the knot of the rope. He would sometime remember the days he spends with the missing teens, either doing homework together and play Blitz Ball or have a little spar with each other. Time passed and he still couldn't let go like most people. How can he? Both Riku and Hikari—and perhaps the other boy, were like little siblings to him. Losing them, means losing family. "…it's hard, but please don't push yourself. They'll come back soon. We just have to wait and see." He smiled as he finished untying the knot.

"I know." The redhead nodded her head.

Wakka smiled, "Well, let's go back." he said before going to his boat.

Kairi climbed down the ladder, stepping inside her own boat.

"Race you guys! Last one back to the main island is a rotten egg!" Tidus shouted as he began to row his boat.

"No fair! You got a head start!" Selphie whined as she starts to row her boat to catch up with the mischievous boy.

The redheaded teen shook his head. "Here we go again… C'mon, Kairi! Let's show them the power of us redheads!" he grinned, rowing his boat faster to match up with the other two.

Kairi giggled, rowing her boat in a steady pace. Her violet-blue eyes glanced over to the island, her eyes spotting something black in the midst of green and orange. When she averted her eyes back to look for the black dot, it was gone. She blinked confusedly. If she wasn't mistaken, there was something or more precisely _someone_ standing on the shores of the small island. Call her bizarre, but it almost seems like she knew who it was. Maybe she was seeing things. She shook her head before continuing to row her boat quicker to catch up with the race.

' _Hikari… Riku… come back soon.'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A figure watched from afar as the four teens raced to the main island.

The cloaked figure leaned against the Paopu tree, propping up an elbow to support their chin.

"Hikari," a voice called out from the portal that appeared behind the said name. A silver-haired teen stepped out from the inky portal. His hood was lowered down, showing his face. His eyes were covered with a black cloth, tied behind his head. "Are you ready to go?" he asked.

Hikari hummed in respond, "Just a second…" she trailed off, feeling the cool ocean breeze. She missed the gentle breeze of Destiny Islands, but most importantly, she missed her friends. Her eyes stared at her friends as they finally made it to the main island, with Wakka being the victor of the four. She let out a laugh. Even from afar, she could still hear Tidus' complain about how Wakka pulled a dirty trick to make him lose, when in reality it was his own fault that he lost. Her eyes watched her friends left the shores to return to the town. "Okay! Let's go." She pushed herself off the tree and turned to face her friend.

Her silver-haired friend frowned, "Hikari… if you want to stay here, we're not stopping you—," he paused when his friend pulled her hood down, showing him her toothy grin.

"This is my own choice, Riku. You guys don't have to worry about me feeling _that_ homesick." Hikari gave a short laugh, crossing her arms over her chest. Sure, she misses her parents, her friends and her home, but she just has to bear with it for a little longer. "And besides… It'll be super weird, going back home to know that everyone has forgotten everything about Sora…" She averted her gaze to look at the ground, a sad smile across her lips.

Riku's hand twitched before they balled up into fists.

The brunette continued, glancing over to look at the sunset. "…myself included."

"Hikari…"

The brunette stretched her hands above her head. "Well! Wakka was right, it's getting pretty late… I should go back to Hollow Bastion, huh?" she did a few squats before standing up straight.

Before Riku could reply, another portal was opened and a small figure stepped out.

"Are you two ready?" Mickey asked, glancing over to the two teens.

Hikari nodded her head. "Sure am! I'm gonna miss training with you guys though…" she said sheepishly, scratching the back of her neck. Training with the two keyblade wielders was fun. She grew closer to the two of them during the time she was training with them.

Mickey laughed. "Don't worry! We'll see each other real soon, just like you said!" he replied.

Riku ruffled her hair. "He's right." He finally said, a smile on his face.

"Hikari," Mickey motioned his hand for the girl to come closer. She complied and kneeled in front of the mouse king, staring at him with a curious look. The king's hand glowed brightly and in a blink of an eye, a keyblade was seen in his hands. It was different from the one he wields now. This one was a star-themed one. He stared at the keyblade in his hand with a smile. "This is the Starseeker! It was Yen Sid's." He began.

Mickey turned his attention back to Hikari. "It was passed down to me. So, I want you to have it now." He finished, giving the keyblade to the girl.

"W—What? Really? Are you sure?" Hikari asked as she held the keyblade, glancing down at it and to Mickey multiple times.

The king nodded. "I'm a hundred percent sure. You need a keyblade to be a keyblade wielder! This is your first step! The Starseeker will become your first keyblade, just like how it became mine." he encouraged.

"Thank you, Mickey…" Hikari smiled at him before looking down at the keyblade. She placed her hand over the shaft, her fingers grazed the stars feeling the details engraved on it. "How can I summon it away and back?" she asked, remembering that she doesn't know how to summon it yet.

Riku chuckled. "Just feel it. Right here." He placed his hand over his heart when Hikari glanced at him.

The brunette closed her eyes and think about summoning the keyblade away.

In a second, the weigh in her hands disappeared.

Hikari opened her eyes and grinned at her achievement. She stared at her hands and focused on her heart to summon the keyblade back into her hands. Her hands began to glow and a silhouette of the keyblade was seen from the light. The light disappeared and a keyblade replaced it.

"You did it!" Mickey exclaimed happily.

"Good job. Now you're a step closer to become a master, Hikari." Riku said and Hikari laughed, summoning the keyblade away once more.

"Yeah!" The brunette stared at her gloved hand, opening and closing it a few times. "…Do you think I'll be able to summon my own keyblade like you and Riku?" she asked, glancing to look at the king.

The king nodded. "I'm certain that someday you can!"

"I hope so. The true keyblade to the wielder will shape according to the person's heart, right?" Hikari asked and Mickey gave a nod. "It'll be interesting to know what my heart looks like." She placed a hand over her heart.

"You'll summon it one day, just like how Riku summoned his keyblade." Mickey said and looked over to the silver-haired teen.

"What was your keyblade called again?" Hikari questioned with a grin.

"It's Soul Eater."

"Pfftt…Right…" Hikari stifled her laugher behind her hand. She earned a good slap to the back of her head from the wielder of said keyblade. She placed her hand over the spot Riku had slapped her as she glared at him, giving him a childish pout. She recovered and raised her hand to the sky. "But I guess the Starseeker also reflects my heart." She said, referring to the keyblade's name.

She stared up to the sky as a few stars began to show up.

" _One of those stars… One day, I'll find you."_

Riku shook his head and patted Hikari's shoulder. "Okay then, let's go, _Starseeker_." He joked, summoning a portal.

"Coming, _Soul Eater_!" Hikari retorted. "Let's go, _Kingdom Key D_!" she said, referring to Mickey who just laughed.

"Hikari. Please. You made it seem like I'm an assassin or something."

"Aw c'mon, _Soul Eater_! You're the one who started it!"

" _Stop_."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"7000 munny, kupo."

"That's outrageous! 3000 munny!"

"6800 munny, kupo."

"What?! What kind of camera is it anyway? Why is it so expensive?" For the past fifteen minutes, Hikari was trying to negotiate the Moogle to sell her a camera with a lower price.

Before returning to Merlin's house, she decided to pay the Moogle a visit.

It was around sunset when she arrived at Hollow Bastion and now it was dark.

"It's the latest model! It's waterproof and it can print photos too, kupo! The best of the best!" The Moogle advertise.

Hikari deadpanned, "So it's a polaroid?"

"It's a digital and it's advanced. You can select how many pictures you wanted to print out and voila! Instant pictures with high definition, kupo!" The Moogle continued happily. "And it has a two-year guarantee, kupo!" he added.

Hikari sighed in defeat, her head hung low as she finally agreed to buy the camera from the Moogle. It was a little overly-priced, but if it was as good as the Moogle says, she guessed that it was worth it. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the munny she had been collecting all this time. She counted the munny exactly to the amount needed to pay the Moogle.

"Here," Hikari sighed out when the Moogle gladly took the munny.

"Thank you for your purchase, Kupo!" The Moogle chirped happily as Hikari shoved her munny back into her pocket. The Moogle placed the cameras on the counter, showing the different colors, he has to offer. "We have blue, pink, purple, black and the classic white! Pick your favorite, Kupo!"

"I'll take the black one… it doesn't stain as much as the others." Hikari said, pointing at the black one. With all the things that she was doing, it was bound to get dirty some time.

"Excellent! Here you go, kupo!" the Moogle handed her a paper bag with the camera and all the thing she needed to use the camera. "Everything is set up! You're just a click away to make memories, kupo!"

"Thanks! And lower your prices, will ya?!" Hikari shouted as she ran towards the alley.

After turning to a corner, she finally reached Merlin's house.

She took a deep breath before pushing the door open.

"I'm back!" The brunette yelled into the house.

Everyone inside the room seemed to be surprised to see the girl.

"Hikari!" Yuffie was the first one who greeted her. The young ninja threw herself at the brunette, wrapping her arms tightly around the younger girl's neck. "It's been weeks! Where have you been?!" she continued to tightly wrap her arms around her.

"Y—Yuffie! Air!" Hikari dramatically flail her arms to the sky, making Yuffie laugh and release her hug. The brunette took a few deep breaths, acting as if she was about to die from a hug.

"Where have you been?" Leon asked, more calmly than Yuffie. Truthfully, everyone was worried when the young girl didn't return for three days. Their worry only grew when days turns to weeks. "We've been worried."

Hikari turned to face the scarred man. "Well… I got a little lost… You know how the Star Shard has a mind of its own, haha!" She laughed, scratching the back of her neck sheepishly. Their memories of Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jiminy were no longer with them. They don't remember that she has a brother. From what Naminé told her, she replaced their memories with something else. That she was traveling from one world to another because she wanted to visit her friends. "But I'm back and staying for a while! I'm ready to help out in the committee again!" she raised her fist, pumping it up enthusiastically.

Aerith smiled. "What matters is that you're safe." She said, walking closer to the brunette, placing her hands on the girl's shoulder.

"Too bad, I missed the peace and quiet." Cloud said from where he stood.

"Hey!" Hikari complained.

Cid laughed. "That's just his way of saying _'it's been boring and quiet without you'_."

Cloud turned to the man. "That's not what I meant." He crossed his arms, hiding his face in his scarf.

"Right…"

Yuffie draped her arm over Hikari's shoulders. "This calls for a celebration! Dinner at Yao's!" she cheered.

Aerith nodded her head. "Sounds like a plan."

Yuffie glanced over to look at the bag Hikari was carrying. "Hey, what's that?" she asked, pointing at the bag.

The brunette raised the bag. "This? Oh! I just bought this! It's my brand-new camera!" she pulled out the black camera, showing it to Yuffie who whistled in awe. The straps were already placed on so she placed it over her head to carry it around her neck. It felt light and wasn't heavy at all. She stared at the camera in her hands before turning to face Aerith. "Which reminds me… Aerith, do you have any spare book for me to use?" she asked, turning to face the woman.

The woman nodded her head. "Of course, what for?"

Hikari smiled, holding the camera as she stared at the screen. "After traveling for a while… I realized that memories are important, but they're also easily forgotten. Keeping the memories close to the heart is important, but I want to have something to keep close. I want to remember and record everything." She explained, raising her chin up to give them all a big grin.

Merlin chuckled. "That is quite right, my dear." He said from where he sat. The wizard dressed in blue rolled up his sleeves and pulled out his magic want from his left sleeve. He waved the wand in a circle before pointing it at the brunette. In a burst of light, a book with a lock appeared in the girl's hands. "How about a diary with a lock to keep all those things private? You're the only one who can open it." He laughed.

Hikari quickly caught on and smiled at the wizard. "Thanks, Merlin!"

"Awww… now I can't read what's going on in that head of yours!" Yuffie pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

The brunette laughed.

"How about we take a group photo before we leave?" Aerith suggested.

"Great idea!" Hikari beamed happily, taking the camera off her neck and held it as far as she can so that everyone could get into the shot.

"Say cheese!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was quiet.

It was quiet ever since half of the Organization left for Castle Oblivion.

He preferred the Grey Area to be filled with the other Organization members, even if most of them were not that friendly with him. It made him feel like he was in a crowd, like those people from town who talk and chat all the time. The silence and emptiness sometimes bothered him.

"Roxas!" said Nobody turned to face the source. A small smile made its way to his lips as he saw the person who greeted him. "Good morning!" the person greeted happily.

"Morning, Xion." Roxas greeted back and the two continued their way to the Grey Area. He was glad that he has someone like Xion in the Organization. She was the same as him. The one chosen by the keyblade. They were similar in a way.

Ever since Roxas woke up from his month long sleep, Xion lost her ability to wield the keyblade. And since then, he has been covering for her. He doesn't mind it at all. In fact, he was happy that he can help out his friend.

"You two seemed happy for some reason! Did something good happen?" A third voice greeted as they placed their hands on top of Roxas' and Xion's head, pushing them slightly down.

Roxas and Xion laughed. "Axel! Stop it!" Xion giggled.

Axel grinned.

It's been around two weeks since Axel returned to the Organization. Even though he's a Nobody, Roxas felt relieved when his friend came back alive. He didn't understand himself. Everyone seemed fine after knowing the members who went to Castle Oblivion were all wiped out, especially Saix. For Roxas? He felt as if something heavy was placed in his chest. He didn't understand what it was, but he doesn't like it.

"You're all late." A deep stern voice said to them, making the trio stop. In front of them stood their fellow Organization member, Saix. He stared down at them, but he was staring specifically at Xion. Roxas didn't know why Saix treats Xion so differently than the others. He seemed to give her harder missions than the rest of them. He didn't like the way Saix was treating his friend so unfairly. "May I ask why you are late? All three of you?" he said, his voice flat.

Axel sighed, stepping forward. "C'mon, Saix! Give us a break! We were late for just two minutes, _two minutes_." He emphasized as he crossed his arms. He stood right in front of Xion, blocking the girl from Saix's piercing stare. "We're not like Demyx! I mean, he's not even here at the moment." He defended.

The blue-haired Nobody let out a soft sigh before turning to face the redhead. "Fine. I will let this one slide. Next time, be on time." he warned, his eyes narrowing.

Roxas frowned at Saix before turning to Xion with a smile. "Well, let's work well today too!"

"Unfortunately, you both are not on the same mission."

The trio froze, staring at Saix in disbelief.

"What? Why?" Roxas stepped forward, furrowing his eyebrows at the man, clearly disliking the idea of not working with Xion for the day. If she works with another member, then they will report her inability to use the keyblade.

"Is that the way to talk to someone who is superior to you?" Saix turned his head to look at the blond, his eyes seemed to held an apathetic look. "What is decided is decided. Axel and Xion will go on a mission together to Twilight Town." He said.

Roxas backed down, at least Xion will be going with Axel.

Axel let out a heavy sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. "C'mon, kiddo. Let's get going." He said as he summoned a corridor of darkness.

Xion glanced over her shoulder to look at Roxas, who smiled reassuringly at her.

The blond Nobody watched as his two friends left the Grey Area, leaving him alone with the strict Organization member.

"Roxas. Your mission today is recon and a solo. Go to Hollow Bastion and find out what you can about that world." Saix ordered.

Roxas held his sigh and nodded his head. He summoned a portal and went through it quickly. It was clear that he wanted to leave as soon as possible. He walked through the portal, his footsteps echoing inside the corridor of darkness. He finally let out the sigh he has been holding.

"Hollow Bastion, huh?"


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Haha an update 😃

Please check out the newest Scrapbook Entry after you read the chapter!

For the scrapbook, please know that I won't be able to draw all of her entries, just the important ones. So there might be a lot of skips, just like this one.

Also, read Little Adventures to understand the story further

Thank you guys so much for the reads, reviews, likes and follows!

TheIrishWriter: thank you so much! Maybe I'll put it in the scrapbook entries.

Gry20: well, it will be shocking haha. And that's a pretty good idea! It gave me a few ideas ^^

Guest: We're a week away from D23! 😃 and thanks! Haha she probably got it from Ven. And Lol! That's so true. Haha I have a few designs for her keyblade. And thank you again!

Lulu9814: thank you so much! Haha, not at all! And thanks! Lol, admit it Cloud!

Mysterygirl145: thank you so much!

c-guest: aww thank you! That does described her haha. And thank you again! Well he probably bumps into things more often with that long bangs of his, he has experience from that lol. (run together with you hahahah) xD

Kingdom Hearts © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 12  
memories

* * *

' _Hollow Bastion… Why does it sound so familiar?'_

Roxas was lost in thought. He didn't know why, but the world's name seemed so familiar to him. Maybe, Hollow Bastion is his home world when he was still a human. After all, ever since he was born as a Nobody, he couldn't recall anything. Not even his home world or even his own name until Xemnas gave him one. It frustrated him to no end that he couldn't remember anything like the other Nobodies. He wanted to know who he was, where he came from and how he became a Nobody. There were so many questions that he wanted to ask, but to who?

He was so deep in thought that he didn't even realize he had reached the end of the corridor. He stopped right in front of it, staring at it with a frown. He never knew how the corridors work when it comes to new worlds. They just appeared out of nowhere and somehow, Xemnas or Saix found it and then ordered someone else to do a recon rather than themselves. Come to think of it, he never seen Xemnas or Saix do any missions.

The blonde heaved out a deep sigh before stepping through the portal.

His shoes clicked against the stoned path. He glanced left and right.

An alleyway.

It was daytime, but the sunlight didn't reach through to the path. The dark corridor blended perfectly in the dark alleyway. He glanced over to his right, looking at the exit of the alleyway. It was brighter and a few people casually walked pass by the small entrance of the alleyway. He wondered why didn't anyone notice him standing in the middle of the path. Maybe it's because how his black coat blended perfectly with the dark background behind him.

' _Time to start I guess…'_ The blond pulled up his hood to cover his head.

He walked towards the end of the alleyway, his shoes clicking against the stoned path. He stopped at the end and leaned against the wall, peeking his head out to look around. From what he learned in recon missions from Vexen, the first thing to do when in a new world is to be cautious of your surroundings and try not to be seen by the inhabitants of the world. When he was certain that no one was looking at his direction, he stepped out into the light, walking along the stores to his left.

' _Most of the stores are still closed, but it's almost noon… shouldn't they be open from around ten or eleven?'_ He stared at the clock located in the middle of the town. The shorter hand was between the number eleven and twelve while the longer hand was around seven. He observed how the stores still have the closed sign turned and most of the stores were still halfway build. Back when he was doing mission in Twilight Town, the town's shops were already open when he arrived, but here… it was as if the town was newly build. _'Is this place new or something?'_ he stared at the window of the store.

It was dark, but he could see the boxes stacked inside. He decided to move on to another place and gather as much as information as he can. There wasn't much to see. Everything was still under reconstruction and there weren't that many people walking around. Once in a while, he would spot a few people walking around with a weapon or two. They sometime stop to help around, carrying things for the elderly and even help opening the shops. He guessed that they were the guards or the police.

' _Other than those guys, everything is quiet. Almost like a ghost town. Nothing much to see.'_ Roxas summed up as he stopped near a bench.

His eyes wondered around and he finally glanced up when he noticed something built higher than the others. His eyes widened when he spotted the large castle. "How did I miss that?!" he whispered under his breath, staring at the castle with wide eyes.

It was huge with many construction machines around it. He never seen anything like it to be honest.

"Argh!" Roxas let out a cry of pain when his head began to throb painfully. He clutched his head tightly as he gritted his teeth.

" _You were just the delivery boy."_

" _Is it really you? Are you really—?"_

It was memories.

Memories of him in this world.

It was short, but he could hear and see everything clearly.

It was about a silver-haired boy and a red-haired girl.

He had seen them before. In the previous memories he received a few weeks ago.

The Nobody placed his hand on his head as the pain subsided. He furrowed his eyebrows as his vision came back. He stared intently at the stoned road as he recalled the memories that just appeared inside his head.

Who were those two to him?

"There they go again! The committee is so helpful."

' _Committee?'_ Roxas blinked. He turned his head to see three women walking nearby him. He decided to push away the memories to listen in on the conversation. Maybe if he listens to the conversation, he could learn something about the world, or better yet about the memories he just saw.

"Yes, they're trying their best to help restore our town back to the way it was." The other woman replied, a smile on her face. "They've worked hard to reach this far." She continued.

The third woman nodded her head. "This place made a lot of improvements since they took over." She said.

Roxas placed his hand on his chin. _'The committee… They must be the one in charge of this world. Was it those people that I passed earlier?'_ he thought, thinking back to the people he passed earlier, the scar-faced man and the talkative girl with a giant star. They were familiar to him, but he decided not to follow them further because of how perceptive they look. _'I better find out more about this committee.'_

"—returned to the committee!"

Roxas snapped out of his thoughts when he missed the name.

 _Who?_

"Thank heavens she returned safely." the second woman sighed in relief, placing a hand worriedly on her cheek. "Everyone was worried about her when she didn't return for weeks." She continued.

The third woman nodded her head in agreement. "Yes, and not even two weeks since she came back she's already working herself harder than anyone." She said. "She's the youngest, but she was always placed to patrol near the castle." She sighed in worry.

"She's not alone though. They always go in partners, right?"

"That's right, if I'm not mistaken, she's with Cloud today."

"That's a relief…"

Roxas stayed quiet as the three women continued to chat and the topic changed. He crossed his arms as his eyebrows furrowed down, deep in thought.

' _This girl… She seemed really well known along with this committee.'_ The blond let out a hum as he uncrossed his arms. His eyes glanced over to look at the castle before deciding to investigate. He decided to push away the thoughts about his new memories. Missions come first. _'I should look around the castle.'_

It was his mission to observe everything in Hollow Bastion and report it back to Saix. The castle and the committee are probably the important topics of his report. He wasn't good at writing detailed reports, but he tried his best to make it as descriptive as possible…which sometime annoys Saix and he made him redo it. At least he was more descriptive than a certain Sitar playing Nobody, right? It wasn't that he was doing it on purpose to annoy the Nobody.

The blond walked up the set of stairs and reached a gate. Something caught his eyes when he reached the Bailey. He stared out of the balcony part of the bridge. It was a wasteland, everything was dead and there was another castle located far away, but it could be seen perfectly from where he stood. The castle looked fragile, almost as if it would crumble down to the ground any minute. It was like everything bad and what's left after a tornado were thrown in to build the towers. The castle he planned on visiting looked far more better than the towers he saw, even with all of the constructions going on.

"Yikes… it even made the Castle that Never Was look good…" Roxas whistled as he leaned against the railing, staring at the castle. He turned around, deciding to continue his way to the castle. His eyes widened when he spotted Emblem Heartless around the place. It was clear a minute ago when he arrived, but now it was swarming with Heartless, Pureblood and Emblem. He summoned his keyblade and lowered himself in a fighting stance.

He swung his keyblade when the floating Emblem Heartless, the Red Noctures along with the same kind of Heartless, swooped down to hit him. They were annoying and depending on what type they are, some magic doesn't work on them as they just absorbed it. He threw his keyblade at them. It spun around in a circle once, killing off the Heartless in its way before it spun back to the owner's hand.

The blond quickly jumped back when a Pureblood lunged at him from the floor. His eyes narrowed, counting the amount of Pureblood Heartless around him. Compared to the Emblems, there was more Pureblood in numbers. He was told to never bother killing the Pureblood since they didn't release hearts like the Emblems.

"Tsk!" Roxas clicked his tongue as he blocked a Shadow, pushing it away from him before slashing it across. His grip on his keyblade tighten as he was surrounded by the Shadows. True that the Pureblood didn't release hearts, but if he ignores them, they just became a pain for him to deal with later. "Can't be helped!" he narrowed his eyes.

The Shadows charged at him, trying to claw him endlessly. The Nobody sidestepped away and swung his keyblade around, taking out the Heartless in his way. He pointed his keyblade and the tip glowed a bright red before shooting a fireball at the Heartless.

"Gotcha!" A grin made its way to his lips when the Heartless disappeared because of his magic. He had gotten better with magic thanks to Xion. Since he could use the keyblade, he rarely used magic to end his kill. Magic was handy in every way, but he wasn't allowed to use it against the Emblem Heartless. "That's the last of it…" he sighed out, a smile on his face.

The blond summoned the keyblade away and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He continued his way across the Bailey. He stopped right when the path ended and glanced to his right, staring at how deep the stairs go. He stood on the edge, staring down at how deep it was to reach the bottom. He let out a sigh before deciding to walk down the stairs the old-fashioned way.

When he reached the bottom, it was colder. Despite the fact that it was daylight and it was warmer when he was up at the Bailey. He shook his head and continued his way to the castle. The path narrowed and became uneven when he reached the Restoration Site. There were signs hung around the gate, each of them was a warning sign about people should keep out.

" _Restoration Site. Do Not Enter…. Warning! Heartless Ahead._ " Roxas let out a snort when he read through the signs. He didn't know why, but he found the signs to be funny. There were a lot of signs, but one just had to make him laugh. It was a badly drawn picture of the Heartless accompanied with a badly drawn stick man running away from the Heartless. "Pffft! It kinda throws off the serious atmosphere around here." He chuckled as he held the piece of paper, before hanging it back.

"Get down!"

Roxas almost jumped when he heard the voice. He quickly moved, pressing himself against the wall to avoid getting seen. He slowly made his way to the corner and peeked his head out to look. His eyes widened when he saw two people fighting against the Heartless. A man and a girl.

The man, a spiky-haired blond with a giant sword in his grasp as the girl use a simple magic rod. They stood apart as they faced the creatures, the man facing Roxas' way as the girl's back was turned on him. The Nobody debated whether or not he should help them. Organization XIII is a secretive group. He was afraid that he would get a serious earful from Saix if he helped out.

"Should I?" Roxas mumbled to himself as his hand glowed, summoning his keyblade.

"Take this!" The blond turned his attention back to the duo and he blinked in surprise when the girl whirled forward casting a Fire spell and then whirled backwards casting a Blizzard spell and then landing on the ground with a soft thud. She took out quite a few Heartless with her magic. "Hah! How about that? Am I good or am I good?" she laughed.

' _She's good… better than me.'_ Roxas admitted, a small smile on his lips as he summoned away his keyblade. _'Looks like they can handle themselves.'_

The man rolled his eyes. "That's rigged." He said before swinging his heavy sword horizontally.

"Hey!" The girl complained, turning around to face him.

Roxas' eyes grew wide when he saw the girl's face.

" _I know I'm late, but I have a good reason this time!"_

They were at the beach. He was staring as the girl came to them, completely out of breath.

"— _that we'll be late for dinner. I'll meet you there!"_

It was dark. He was looking at her as she ran back to a house.

" _I missed you—"_

He was staring down at his own hands as they were around the girl's back, giving a hug.

The Nobody collapse to his knees when he the memories ended. He stared at his hands as they tremble. He raised one hand up to his head as the other balled up into a fist.

"That was…" Roxas finally found his voice as he closed his eyes, recalling the memories back. The girl in his memories was the same as the girl fighting those Heartless. "That girl…"

"Who… is she to me?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari huffed out tiredly when she took down a Heartless with her rod. She jumped back and threw her rod at the Heartless while she was in midair. Her rod managed to land a hit on the Heartless and then returned to her hand when she landed safely on the ground.

"Get down!"

The brunette almost jumped when she heard Cloud's voice. She didn't look back as she trusted the man's words.

She quickly ducked down and Cloud's sword went over her head as it took down a few Heartless that jumped at her from behind. The girl turned her body from her position and grabbed Cloud's hand. The man pulled her up and he bends his knees for her to step on it. She did a backflip and released her hold on his hand. Her feet landed on the sword's wide surface, bending her knees to a squat position before Cloud swung his sword at the direction of the Heartless, giving a speed boost.

"Take this!" Hikari whirled forward twice, casting Fire in her attack. She whirled backwards while casting Blizzard, ending the attack. She landed on the ground with a soft thud. She placed one hand on her hips as the other twirled the rod. "Hah! How about that? Am I good or am I good?" she asked, a smug grin across her face as she summoned her rod away.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "That's rigged." He swung his sword horizontally, killing the last Heartless. He lowered the sword down as he patted the dirt from Hikari's shoes off from his pants.

"Hey!" Hikari complained, turning around to glare at him. A childish frown was seen on her face as she crossed her arms, giving a look at the man who just insulted her.

The blond man slung his sword over his shoulder and strapped it on his back before turning to the girl, an apathetic look across his face. "Let's head back. Our job is done." He said as he walked towards the exit of the site.

Hikari uncrossed her arms, staring at the man's back. "Do you think we should head on a little further?" she jerked her thumb over her shoulder to the valley.

Cloud stopped on his tracks and turned to face her. "No." he replied and before Hikari could retort, he continued. "Any further than this and they'll be fighting us instead." He said.

Hikari's eyes widened for a moment before silently agreeing. Cloud was right. If they traveled further beyond the check point, they would be outnumbered by the amount of Heartless and might get turned to a Heartless too. The committee would have to deal with their Heartless later on if they lost. She sighed and glanced back at the check point before following the man out of the Valley. She wanted to investigate what was beyond the check point. The towers with the Heartless emblem to be precise, but she was too scared to do it alone. Plus, everyone in the committee warned her not to go beyond the point, even the carefree Yuffie.

"But… what do you think is beyond that point?" Hikari asked, walking beside the man.

Cloud shrugged. "Probably something evil." He curtly replied. He suddenly stopped and gave the girl a stern look. "Don't even think—"

"Oh, c'mon Cloud! I ain't that stupid to go there alone—wait…" Hikari frowned. A goofy smile was suddenly seen across her face when she realized something. She bumped her elbow on Cloud's arm a few times, a teasing look on her face. "Awwww! You do care!" she grinned.

Cloud sighed before continuing to walk up the stairs to the Bailey. "Whatever."

Hikari laughed.

"You're lucky you don't wield a keyblade, otherwise we'll be the target of all those Heartless." Cloud said and Hikari hummed in reply.

Lately, she has been using her rod rather than her keyblade to fight the Heartless. Only when she was training with Merlin that she used the keyblade. She was afraid that if she suddenly used the keyblade in front of everyone, they would question how she got it, since they only knew that there was only one Chosen One. She wouldn't be able to lie to them and she would blurt out the truth that she got it from Mickey. By telling them that she got it from the King, it would put the King and Riku and maybe herself in trouble with the Organization. So, she didn't take the risk to use her keyblade in public. The only person who knew she could wield one was Merlin, but that was only because Mickey was the one who told him.

"Hold on! This deserve to be in the scrapbook!" Hikari pulled out her camera from her pouch.

"Don't." Cloud covered the lens with his gloved hand when it was pointed at him.

"You're so shy! Smile~!" Hikari laughed, enjoying her moment.

"You took a picture of me and I'll swear that your two-year guarantee will never work again." The blond threatened.

Hikari blew a raspberry, putting away her camera back into the case and into her pouch. "You're such a stick in the mud." She sighed out, crossing her hands behind her head with her gaze averted to look at the sky. "Can't you just take a joke?" she sighed.

"Hmph," Cloud snorted as he continued to walk through the Bailey. The duo was back at it with their arguments. Since the day Hikari returned to Hollow Bastion, they two had been at it ever since. It didn't help that the two was almost paired up to patrol around the town, but they both never complained. For Cloud, as long as Hikari could fight, he was fine with it. As for Hikari, well, she didn't really mind anyone who she was paired with. She just liked working with a partner. The blond stopped in front of the door to Merlin's House when he noticed that Hikari has been quiet. "Coming?" he asked as he turned to the girl.

"Huh? Oh," Hikari responded as she turned to look at him. "You go on ahead. I have to meet up with Mr. Scrooge." She answered.

"Fine by me." Cloud shrugged before entering the small house alone. He didn't think anything was wrong since Hikari has been visiting Scrooge since she returned. The duck asked for her help, making her an ice cream tester for his ice creams.

Hikari smiled and her smile turned to a small frown. She had a strange feeling that she was being followed. Maybe it was just her, since Cloud didn't sense anything and he was the sharpest one in the group. Perhaps she was just paranoid, but she had to make sure.

The brunette continued to walk towards the town square, taking shortcuts and alleyways to reach it. As she walked across the narrow path, she could hear footsteps beside hers. She didn't stop to look back as it would make the person knew she was being followed. She wanted to surprise the stalker and turned the game on them. As she finally reached the town square, she greeted a few people as she passed by them. Her eyes glazed over to the glass window on one of the shops. Her eyes widened when she spotted another reflection a few feet behind her.

An Organization member.

Her eyes narrowed.

Her instincts were right. She was being followed. By an Organization member no less.

' _Did they find out?'_ Hikari thought nervously as she turned to continue walking. The Organization member continued to follow her from the distance. Her heart beat loudly against her chest that she could almost hear it. She gulped and took a deep breath, calming herself down. _'Calm down… there's no way that they knew about me with Riku and Mickey… unless Axel decided to snitch on me.'_ She frowned deeply.

She decided to lead the Organization member to one of the secluded area of the town, the Fountain Area. It was recently restored by the committee while she was away at Castle Oblivion and training with the others. Truth be told, it was now one of her favorite place. A few of the fountains were already running with water. She didn't know why people rarely go there. It wasn't as grand as the one back in Radiant Garden, but for her it was still pretty to look at even with all of the unfinished construction going on.

The brunette turned to a sharp corner that leads to the Fountain area, losing the stalker. She hid behind one of the large pipes and waited for the Organization member to come. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the Organization member ran straight to the Fountain area, glancing left and right to look for her.

As quickly as she can, she sneaked up behind the confused Organization member, her rod in her grasp.

"Why are you following me?" Hikari asked, pointing her rod at the Organization member.

The black-coated man jumped at the sound of her voice, turning around frantically, raising his hands up in surrender. "O-Oh um… so-sorry! I didn't mean to make scare you." His voice didn't sound deep like all the other member that she had met. He sounded like he was around her age. He wasn't as tall as Axel or as muscled as the rest of the Organization. Perhaps he's a new member? "It's just that… um… I… uh…" he fumbled with his words.

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "…Are you really apart of them?" she asked.

The Organization member seemed to be taken aback. "You know about us?" he asked.

"Sorta. Yeah." Hikari said, staring skeptically.

The boy seemed to think for a moment before taking a step forward. "I… it's just that…" he took a deep breath before letting it out deeply. "My name's Roxas. Would you mind telling me yours?" he politely asked.

"Uh…" Hikari stared dumbfounded at the Nobody named Roxas. He was by far, the most polite Nobody in the Organization that she has ever met. She stood there awkwardly, debating whether or not she should tell her name. She scratched the back of her neck, shuffling her feet, not sure how she should react. "Well… uh… I guess not… I'm—"

Her eyes widened when Heartless appeared around them.

The two of them quickly jumped away from the edge of the circle to the middle. The two stood back to back as they face the Heartless. Hikari held her rod tightly as Roxas' hand glowed before a familiar keyblade appeared in his grasp.

"W-What—?! Why do you have a keyblade?!" Hikari shouted in surprise at the sight of the keyblade.

The Nobody turned to face her, his jaw dropped in surprise. Despite the hood covering half of his face, she could see his nose and mouth perfectly. "What do you mean? Do you know why I could wield one?" he asked, straightening his posture from his fighting stance.

Hikari gasped in realization, placing a hand over her mouth before she looked away.

"Tell me, please… why do I—!" Roxas turned his head at the direction of the Heartless. He stood in front of the girl and swung his keyblade, killing the Heartless that jumped at them.

Hikari frowned and realized the situation. She stood in a fighting stance, preparing herself for another battle against the Heartless. She raised her rod, casting Thunder to electrocute the Heartless as the Nobody ran forward. All the time they were fighting against the Heartless, she sneaked glances to look at the Nobody. His fighting style was similar to someone and the keyblade's design didn't help either. It was as if she knew the Nobody.

Her eyes widened in surprise when the big-bellied Heartless ran towards her, hitting her back with its' belly. She was thrown back a few feet, landing on the ground with a thud. She let out a pained groaned, pushing herself up with her elbows.

"Argh… that hurts…" Hikari gritted her teeth as she stood up.

The Nobody quickly came to her rescue, taking out the Heartless in one swing. He kneeled down in front of her, offering his hand for her to take. "You okay?" he asked.

He sounded as if he was worried about her.

"Peachy." Hikari replied before taking his hand. The Nobody helped her up and she stood beside him when more Heartless appeared. The two glanced at each other, nodding their head before the charged at the Heartless at the same time.

Hikari swung her rod at the Heartless, hitting it to Roxas' direction. The Nobody quickly hit the Heartless back with the keyblade, killing it off. The two worked together, passing attacks to one and another. It took them a good fifteen minutes until they finished the last Heartless with Roxas landing the final blow.

The brunette panted as she summoned away her rod. She was exhausted. First, she had to clear out the Valley and the Restoration Site with Cloud and now she was fighting another batch of Heartless with who is supposed to be her enemy. Truth be told, she can't wait to go back to Merlin's House and sleep for the rest of the day.

"Nice work." Roxas said as he smiled, his keyblade still in hand.

Hikari nodded. "You too." She can't help but smile at him. He was different from the other Nobodies. He didn't try to kill her on their first meeting. She appreciated it. She turned her head away, thinking once more about whether or not she should tell her name to him. "It's Hikari…" she said, turning to face him.

"Huh?"

"My name, it's Hikari."

"Hikari—" After Roxas repeated her name, he suddenly clutched his head, yelling out in pain. He dropped his keyblade as he staggered back and forth. "Argh! Ugh!" he shook his head left and right, his nose scrunched up in pain.

Hikari stared at the Nobody in concern. "H—Hey! You okay—!" her eyes widened when Roxas stopped screaming in pain, only to fall backwards.

The brunette reacted quickly and stretched her left arm behind the Nobody's back, catching him before he fell. The sudden weight dropped on her arm made her muscle ached even more, but she forced herself to hold on. Her left arm supported Roxas as he went limp in her arms. After a few seconds, her legs gave out and she gently kneeled down to the ground with Roxas in her arms.

The brunette moved her arm to Roxas' shoulders from his back, shaking him a little. "Hey! Don't pass out on me now! I don't know where you live!" she complained, staring at the boy's hidden face.

When there was no reply, the girl let out a heavy sigh.

"Great…" Hikari mumbled. She sat there awkwardly with the unconscious Nobody in her arms. She really didn't know what to do with the Nobody. He was her enemy. It would be quicker if she just finished him then and there when he was still unconscious, but she can't bring herself to do it. "Now what am I supposed to do?" she sighed out, pinching the bridge of her nose.

The brunette stared at the keyblade Roxas dropped. It was really, really familiar. It was almost the same as Mickey's, but it was in a different color. She leaned a bit forward, taking the keyblade from the ground and held it in her hand. The keyblade stayed in her grasp. She placed the keyblade beside her as her blue eyes wondered to the boy's hidden face. Her hand slowly reached out to pull down his hood, but she stopped midway, thinking that it was wrong to do it without his permission.

But… he was the one who stalked her first…

The brunette gingerly pulled down the Nobody's hood.

She regretted it.

She recognized the face and hair from anywhere.

"VEN?!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

" _I'm not crying! The wind blow sand to my eyes!"_

"—xas!"

" _I'm back… I miss you too—."_

"Ro—!"

" _Let's make an oath!"_

"Roxas!"

The blond slowly opened his eyes. His vision was blurry for a few seconds before they focused on the person above his face.

It was Xion.

"Xi…on?" the blond sat up, holding his head as it throbbed. Something slid down from his chest. He looked down and saw a blue jacket on his lap. He held the jacket, staring at it confusedly before his eyes widened in realization. He quickly jumped up to his feet, surprising the black-haired girl. He looked around frantically, trying to find the owner of the jacket.

He remembered Hikari was wearing the same jacket that he was holding.

"Roxas?" Xion's voice snapped him away from his trail of thoughts. The blond turned to face his friend who gave him a concerned look. "You okay?" she asked.

"…yeah." Roxas sighed out, his eyes staring at the jacket.

Xion gave him a small smile. "Someone must've put that jacket on you when you fell asleep on the bench." She said, her eyes staring at the blue jacket.

"Huh?" Roxas blinked, lifting his gaze up to look at the bench. His keyblade was leaned against the bench. He turned to look confusedly at her, "Asleep? Really?"

He didn't know what happened after she told him her name. All he remembered is that he was following the girl to the Fountain Area, fought the Heartless together and then she told him her name. He remembered all those memories flooding his head and he could still remember them now. What really happened after he blacked out?

Xion nodded her head. "Yeah. You didn't come to the Clock Tower and we thought you were too tired because of your mission." She began and a small frown was seen on her lips. Despite how low the lighting it was at the area and with her hood pulled up, he could see how concerned she was. "But when we returned to the castle and you weren't there, we decided to look for you. You had us worried and here you are! Snoozing on the job!" she gave him a teasing look, her hands on her hips.

Roxas blinked before a chuckle passed his lips. "Hehe, sorry… I didn't realize that I fell asleep that long." He said.

Xion shook her head, the smile still plastered on her lips. "Okay then Sleepy Head, let's find Axel and go back. It's late."

The blond nodded and he raised the jacket in his hand, a small frown appeared.

He glanced up to the darkening sky. His blue eyes spotted something bright shooting up to the sky before it disappeared. He let out a heavy sigh as he walked towards the bench, taking his keyblade and summoning it away.

The blond followed Xion out of the Fountain Area, the jacket still in hand. His eyes traveled down to one of the pockets when he saw something sticking out. He dug his hand inside the pocket, pulling out the piece of paper. He unfolded the paper with his finger and read through the short text.

 _Keep it.  
It goes with your eyes._

— _Hikari_

Roxas stared at the jacket and then to the note.

' _Hikari...'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"…they left?"

Yen Sid nodded his head.

Hikari stared at the powerful sorcerer with a crestfallen look. She lowered her head a little, trying to hide her face.

"DiZ thought it would be best if they move to another location where the Organization will never expect." Yen Sid continued.

The brunette raised her gaze. "Without telling me?" she sounded so hurt.

Yen Sid closed his eyes.

Hikari pursed her lips, trying her best not to burst out in tears and anger. "Do you know where they moved to?" she asked, taking a step forward. "Does Mickey and Riku know?"

The sorcerer nodded his head. "Yes. I believe they moved to a world between the realms of light and dark, known as Twilight Town." He answered and Hikari nodded her head. She didn't know where the world is, but at least she knew the name of the world they moved in. "Both Mickey and Riku were present when they moved. I believe they were waiting for the right time to inform you." He finished.

"Oh…" Hikari sighed heavily.

"Is there a reason as to why you wish to see Naminé so suddenly? Have something occurred?" Yen Sid questioned, his brows furrowed.

Hikari lifted her chin up, staring at the master. After she saw Roxas' face was similar to Ventus', she wanted to see Naminé and asked her if Roxas is Ventus' Nobody. There were a lot of questions going on around her head and she just felt so frustrated and exhausted. She didn't know who else to ask besides her friend, Naminé. She can't ask Mickey. She can't ask Riku. And she can't ask Yen Sid either. She really can't describe what she was feeling at the moment. It almost felt like her heart was filled with a ton of bricks.

"…it's fine." Hikari answered and she saw the way Yen Sid stared at her. As if he knew something was wrong. "I just… haven't seen anyone in a while." She lied, laughing nervously.

Yen Sid sighed. "I understand." He could tell there was something bothering the keyblade wielder's mind, but he decided not to pester her further. He just has to wait until she wants to share what was bothering her mind. She was the first the keyblade wielder who inherited the keyblade by a Master in the past years. He could see the potential in her. "Before you return to Hollow Bastion, there is something that I want to teach you." He said.

Hikari blinked, her eyes lighting up when she heard that Yen Sid is about to teach her something. "Yeah?" she asked.

The Master raised up from his seat and he walked towards the room to his left.

"Have you ever heard of 'Teleport'?"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

* * *

 _Scrapbook Entry 13 entered_


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: an update! Yay!

Please check out the Scrapbook entry after you finished reading this chapter 😃

Thank you guys so much for the awesome reviews, reads, favs and follows!

Btw… DID YOU GUYS SEE THE D3 GAMEPLAY?! I was crying tears of joy when I saw it! So beautiful! TTwTT

c-guest: yay! Roxas! And you're right, so many emotions…

AngelofMemories: thank you so much!

Guest: it is a possibility… haha

Guest: Yeah! I think I'm gonna predict that KH will come out around March 2018. Haha! I should make a small comic about that one! It'll be hilarious. That would've been bad if Saix finds out… haha definitely!

Gry21: thanks! Oh! Happy belated birthday! Hope you have a wonderful birthday this year 😃

Lulu9814: Yeah haha.

Mysterygirl145: yeah, she can't actually remember him. Ohh! That sound interesting!

theIrishWriter: thank you so much! Haha I guess he still go that protective brother instinct in him! lol! Hmm, the HB people think the committee as the people who helps a lot and in return, they care for the committee since they helped around a lot. Haha probably, Xion is a magic user. Oooo that'll be interesting to see. (and yup! I was referring to that post lol)

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 13  
deal

* * *

"Is something bothering you?"

Hikari raised her chin up, a surprised look across her face. "Huh? What do you mean?" she asked the wizard dressed in blue. She straightened her posture and lowered her keyblade as the purple glow around her keyblade slowly disappeared. She was in mid casting the 'teleport' spell when Merlin decided to question her. "What makes you think that something is bothering me?" she said defensively.

She didn't mean to come out rude, but the past few days had been rough for her.

"Well, it is really obvious! Your face shows it." Merlin pointed out with a smile.

The brunette raised her left hand to touch her face. She didn't know that she was showing it. She knew that she wasn't the best at acting, but she thought that her acting skills improved. The girl blinked when the wizard snapped his fingers, making a table with two chairs, complete with tea and snacks appearing right in the center of the room. He waved his hand, motioning for the keyblade wielder to come and join him for tea.

Merlin sat on the chair, a cup of tea in his hand. "How about we take a break and have some tea?" he offered, waving his finger to make a cup filled with tea come to Hikari.

The brunette smiled a little, summoning away her keyblade. She took the cup of tea before sitting down opposite of Merlin. She was used to Merlin's little tea party. It was often, be it with her while training or with the others while they're on break from patrolling. A day without tea and snacks with Merlin was something that has to be questioned. It became a habit for everyone, including Cloud. Everyone would sit down, relax and talk about their day.

"Would you mind if I ask what is bothering you?" Merlin asked, placing the teacup down on the saucer.

Hikari let out a sigh, staring down at her reflection on the tea's surface. "It's just that… well… you know about Mickey, right?" she asked, raising her chin up to look at Merlin.

The wizard blinked. "Is this about him not teaching you his ways of the keyblade?" he concluded, a hand on his chin. It was understandable that the young girl was upset because her original master hadn't come and taught her about the keyblade. She's Mickey's apprentice and yet she's here learning with him. He cleared his throat. "I understand. I'll tell the King when he visits—"

"No! No! No! It's not like that! I'm not complaining at all! You're a really great teacher!" Hikari quickly denied, waving her hands frantically as she stood up from her chair. Mickey did teach her a few tricks with the keyblade and she really thought that Merlin is a great teacher. He taught her everything he knew about magic and how to wield the keyblade, even if he wasn't a keyblade wielder. She took a deep breath before letting it out. "It's just that I'm a little upset they didn't tell me that they moved…" she sighed out deeply, sitting back down.

Merlin stared at the brunette. "I see… Yen Sid did say they were waiting for the right time to tell you." He said.

Hikari rubbed the back of her neck. "Yeah… but… they could've at least tell me right away." she frowned. It's been a few days since she found out about Naminé and the others moving away from the Mysterious Tower to a world called Twilight Town. And still, no news from Riku or Mickey. She expected that they would come right away to her to explain, but they didn't. "I'm still waiting for them to come and visit." She slumped in her seat.

Aside from Yen Sid, Merlin also knew about Mickey and Riku. As far as he was told, the King and Riku has gone their separate ways when Riku became worried about the remnants of Ansem in his heart. He didn't have the heart to tell the young girl about them going in their own ways. It would just bring more worry and stress to find out that her friends are no longer traveling together, even if they're capable of handling themselves.

"Well, perhaps tomorrow they will come and tell you?" Merlin smiled, trying to lift the girl's spirits up.

Hikari blew a raspberry, straitening her posture. "Psssh! Yeah and maybe the day after tomorrow, or the day after that and that and that." She said sarcastically, averting her eyes to look at the ceiling. She hung her head low with her arms crossed before lifting her head up, a smile on her face. "No matter! I don't have time to worry about it! As long as those no-good Organization don't know where Naminé is, I'm fine with it!" she said cheerfully.

Merlin clapped his hands. "That's the spirit, my dear!" he was impressed on how fast the girl could move on.

Hikari grinned. Usually after talking about her problems to someone else, her chest felt lighter, almost as if something heavy is lifted up. But after talking about why everyone didn't tell her that they moved, her heart still felt heavy. Maybe it was because her mind was still wrapped around Roxas, the mysterious Organization member who looks like Ventus. Unlike her other problem, she can't actually talk about this one to Merlin or to anyone for that matter.

The only one she could talk to about her three friends is Naminé.

But she moved away.

And she never really had the chance to ask about them since Riku, Mickey, Yen Sid, DiZ and the three fairies were always around.

The wizard smiled. "Shall we continue your training before we go down for lunch?"

Hikari raised her chin up and nodded her head, a smile on her face. She stood up and with a snap of Merlin's fingers, the table and everything with it disappeared in a puff of smoke. The brunette raised her hand and closed her eyes, focusing on summoning the Starseeker to her hand.

It appeared in a flash.

The brunette lowered herself to a fighting stance and the keyblade glowed purple when she activated the teleport spell.

"Okay! Let's start!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Clank_

"Thank you for helping me do the dishes." Aerith smiled at the young girl standing beside her.

 _Drip_

Hikari rinsed the dirty plate with water before scrubbing the grease off of it. "Don't sweat it! As long as I'm not the one mopping or sweeping or dusting, I'm okay with it!" she turned on the water and rinsed the plate clean before giving it to Aerith.

 _Sweep_

"Hey! We have a system you know! You have to do those one day!" Yuffie complained, pointing her finger at the chart on the green board near Cid's computer. On the board was a piece of paper with everyone's name written on it. It was a list of chores everyone has to do for the next week. Since Hikari only returned around two weeks ago, all she had to do is wash the dishes and do the laundry, which were both shared with Aerith. Her schedule wasn't decided until the next month, so she decided to help Aerith or Merlin around. "Your job is like the easiest since you share it with Aerith!" the girl huffed childishly.

Hikari peeked her head out from the kitchen, giving a smug look. "You're just jealous that you're stuck with Cloud's chores too!" she sniggered. Around a week ago, Yuffie lost a bet with Cloud. It resulted with her having to do Cloud's share of chores for two weeks. She watched the black-haired girl sulked before returning to sweep the floor. Her blue eyes wondered to the spiky-haired blond sitting comfortably on the chair while waiting for Yuffie to finish his chore. The people who were in the house were herself, Yuffie, Cloud, Cid and Aerith. Both Leon and Merlin were absent after they finished lunch since they have something to do at the castle. "Hey Yuffie! Wanna make a bet?" she called out, a grin on her lips.

"NO!" Came a loud reply.

The brunette burst out laughing, leaning against the sink for support.

Aerith shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "So, how's your magic training coming along?" she asked when Hikari's laughter died down.

"Haha, it's going along great!" Hikari's laughter turned to chuckles. She resumed what she was doing before she teased her friend. She took another plate from the sink and began to scrub it in circles. "I'm currently learning teleport or warp… it's not Merlin's-Teleport-Level, but more like… um… I guess you could say it's like me moving from the kitchen to the door." She rambled as she rinsed the plate.

"That's impressive." Aerith complimented as she took the plate. "It takes time to learn something new. You'll be as good as Merlin one day." She added, placing the dry plate with the rest.

Hikari turned off the water. "I hope so." She dried her hands on her shirt, leaving a few wet handprints on her clothes. She wished she could be as good as Merlin or Yen Sid. They both are legends among all magical users and she was sure they were legends among keyblade wielders too. She hoped that someday either of them will teach her about the keyblade's history. It was the only history lesson she was interested in. Maybe if she knew more about the history, she would know more about her three friends. "I can't wait to learn how to make everything clean itself like Merlin. It would save a lot of time." She said jokingly.

Aerith shook her head, a smile on her lips. "But remember not to rely too much on magic or else you'll be too dependent on it." She advised and earned a nod from the younger girl.

' _I guess Riku was right about that…'_ Hikari gave a small smile, remembering the time when Riku taunted her when her magic ran out. It was hard to let go of the past, but she tried as much as she can to forget it. They both made up and forgave each other. There wasn't a single reason that she should remember the things he did to her and her friends in the past. _'When will you come and visit?'_ she let out a soft sigh.

The young woman took the dry plates, carrying them to put them away in the cabinets. The younger girl was about to help her, but she stopped her with a smile. "You can wait with the others while I put these away, after that we'll leave for our shift, kay?" she smiled kindly.

Hikari gave a nod, crossing her hands behind her head. She walked towards the main room, giving a loud yawn. It was almost like this for her. Almost every day she would wake up, train with Merlin, have lunch, chores, patrol, have dinner, tea time and then off to bed. On other days, she would train with Merlin twice a day. It was almost the same as her routine at Destiny Islands, besides training and fighting Heartless of course.

She wondered what her friends are doing. She knew that vacation was over.

For the first time, she actually missed going to her school in Destiny Islands.

A jab to her ribs snapped her out from her thoughts. "Aw! Hey! What was that for?!" she glared at her black-haired friend as she rubbed the spot where her friend had jabbed her with the broom.

"Other than daydreaming, how about helping me with my chores, hmm?" Yuffie gave a teasing look, wiggling her eyebrows as she tried to give the broom to Hikari.

"No way." Hikari crossed her arms, leaning away from her friend. She turned her head away to ignore her friend's sad puppy look. All the while ignoring Yuffie, her blue eyes caught the papers on the tack board beside Cid's computers. It was still pretty empty with only a few pictures and notes here and there. One of the notes were the chores' schedule for the committee. She walked closer to the board, staring at the paper. "Hmm… looks like you're still stuck with mopping duty." She sniggered.

Yuffie whined. "I blame you, Cloud!" she turned, using the broom to point at said man.

The blond man rolled his eyes. "Who was the one who made the bet?" he retorted.

The young ninja sighed, her shoulders slumped. "Me…" she said in defeat. She heard her roommate snigger in her dismay. The girl turned to read the schedule and let out a laugh. "Don't laugh now, Hikari! 'Cause you might be stuck with trash duty!" she shouted in triumph.

Hikari's eyes widened for a moment before giving Yuffie a big pout. "It still beats mopping duty, at least all I have to do is take the bag of trash out to the dump outside." She crossed her arms, a smug look across her face.

"I'll make sure to throw out a lot of trash then!" Yuffie grinned.

The brunette faked a gasp. "How could you be so un-ecofriendly?!" she placed a hand on her chest dramatically.

"Girls, girls! If you want to fight, take it outside." The man behind the computers said grumpily, jerking his thumb to the door.

"Sorry, gramps…" Both Yuffie and Hikari drawled out their apology with a lazy tone.

"Don't call me gramps!" the man shouted, giving a whack to the back of their head, to which they responded with a loud 'AW'. Hikari rubbed the back of her head, giving the man the stink eye. The man scoffed before sitting back down on his chair, ignoring the two girls' dirty looks. "I had enough loud noises for one morning." He grunted, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Yuffie laughed. "It's noon now!"

"Don't act smart with me, young lady." Cid gave a look at Yuffie, pointing his finger accusingly at her.

"Wha'cha working on anyway? You're almost in front of the computers twenty-four seven." Hikari crossed her hands behind her head, tilting her chin up to look at one of the green colored screen. She tried to understand the coding on the screen, but it was impossible to know what it all means. They were just a bunch of numbers, mostly zeros. "Wish my parents would let me do that though…" she sighed out.

Cid turned his head to glare at her. "You're still a kid, kiddo. Listen to you parents." He chided making Hikari shrug her shoulders. The man turned his attention back to the computer screen, staring at it intently as he tried to figure out which coding was wrong. "Don't you remember, kid? It's actually for a defense system I'm working on. You know, the more power we have the more chance we get to stop those pesky Heartless." He said, squinting his eyes before he began to type on the keyboard.

The brunette hummed in reply. Now she remembers. She heard about it once in the committee meeting, but it was never discussed again. She remembered Yuffie jokingly suggested that they should make robots to help them protect the town. Cid actually took it to heart and tried to create the defense system from scratch. It was like a challenge for him.

"It's actually rare that Yuffie comes up with a great idea." Hikari said, a hand on her chin as her eyes glanced over to the black-haired girl.

Yuffie's eye twitched. "Hey! It's more rare coming out from you!" she swung her broom, aiming to hit Hikari's head. The brunette quickly caught the broom, clapping both her hands on the hilt to stop it.

"It rare coming from the both of you." Cloud said from where he sat.

"You rarely even talk in the meeting!" Hikari retorted, taking the broom from Yuffie.

Cloud snorted in reply, looking away.

"HAH! Burn~!" Yuffie laughed, clutching her sides.

"Sssshhhhhh!" Cid shushed the three, his teeth gritted as a finger was pressed against his lips. "Zip it!" he glared.

Yuffie scoffed. "Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed." She placed her hand on her hip.

At that moment, Aerith came out from the kitchen. "Are you ready to go?" she asked, turning her head to the brunette.

Hikari nodded, giving the broom back to Yuffie before following Aerith towards the door. "Well, see you guys later!"

"Have a save trip!" Yuffie replied cheerfully, waving her hand goodbye while the other held the broom.

The brunette smiled as she closed the door behind her.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas sighed.

It had been days after he was giving the recon mission to Hollow Bastion.

He had giving the report he has written about Hollow Bastion. He left out the point that he met someone there. It wasn't that he was trying to fake his report. Everything was written as it happened. Just the part when he met Hikari was left out. There wasn't a single name mentioned in the report. He didn't know why he did it, but he just didn't want Saix to find out.

He never told Axel or Xion either.

The Nobody kept it to himself.

He silently wished that he would be given a mission to Hollow Bastion again. There was just so many questions he has for the mysterious girl. She appeared in so many parts of his memories along with the redhead and the silver-haired boy. She was the first one out of the trio that he found. And when he summoned his keyblade, she seemed to know why he could wield one.

If he had the chance to go back to Hollow Bastion, he would take it.

After missions, he would meet up with Axel and Xion at the Clock Tower. He was hesitant to tell them. They're friends, but he didn't have the guts to tell them about the Somebody he met. He trusts his friends fully and he believed that they won't hurt Hikari, but he was afraid.

But afraid of _what_?

The blond shook his head, shaking all of the thoughts away as he entered the Grey Area. His blue eyes trailed across the room, finding only Saix and Demyx in the room. He walked closer to the blue-haired man, his footsteps echoing in the spacious and empty room.

"Where is everybody?" Roxas asked aloud, glancing left and right. He was afraid that Xion was paired up with Xaldin, Xigbar or Luxord. He hoped that she was paired with Axel or at least have a solo-mission.

"They left for their mission." Saix curtly replied, raising his gaze up from the papers in his hands.

Roxas stared back. "Xion and Axel?" he asked, his hands balled up into fists.

"Number XIV has a solo mission. As for Axel, he's paired with Xigbar for the day." Saix answered and Roxas relaxed his hands. He was glad that Xion wasn't paired with anyone, but he was still bitter towards Saix for treating Xion differently than the other. He even still treats him better! Even after he talks back to him. "Roxas. You and Demyx will go to Hollow Bastion. There has been a number of Heartless sighted in that world." He ordered, his eyes narrowing at Roxas.

The blond blinked confusedly. _O…kay?_

From the sofa, he could hear Demyx groan out in dismay. "Oh, come on… Why did you have to give us a mission to that place? I heard that place is crawling with Heartless!" he whined. It was clear that he didn't like the idea of going to a world where many Heartless are lingering around. "Can't you give us an easier one? How about Twilight Town?" he tried to convince the man, a goofy grin across his face.

Saix gave Demyx a look that could actually kill.

"Okay! Okay! Geez! Fine!" Demyx shouted, giving up on trying to convince Saix to give him an easier mission. The mullet-haired man pushed himself up from the sofa and turned to face Roxas. "Well, ready when you are, partner!" he grinned, his hands on his hips.

Roxas nodded his head and Demyx walked around the sofa before raising his hand, summoning the corridor of darkness. The oldest of the two Nobodies stepped inside the portal first, leaving the youngest in the room with the second in command. He glanced over his shoulder to look at the blue-haired man who kept his piercing gold-yellow eyes at him. The blond turned his head away, looking forward as he stepped inside the portal as well. It was weird being under the watchful eyes of Saix. All this time, Saix has never stare at him like that. It was almost as if he was trying to find something.

A lie perhaps?

He let out a loud sigh.

Demyx joined him. "I know, right? Why do we have to be stuck there collecting hearts? Saix could've given this mission to Xigbar or Xaldin! They know the place more than we do!" he complained, dragging his feet all the way across the portal.

Roxas blinked. "What… do you mean?"

The mullet-haired Nobody straightened his posture, staring at Roxas confusedly. "You didn't know? Almost everybody in the Organization came from Hollow Bastion." He explained.

"Including me?" Roxas asked, pointing to himself.

"Dunno. Probably." Demyx replied, shrugging his shoulders. Before Roxas could ask further, the end of the portal was seen a few feet away from them. "Hey! We're here! C'mon!" he shouted as he quickened his pace to the end of the portal.

Roxas jogged towards the portal and stepped out, catching up with his senior. He glanced around, finding the place they appeared at was the same place he appeared days ago. It was just as he remembered. Humid and dark.

"C'mon, Rox! The faster we finish this the faster we can RTC!" The Nobody shouted from the exit of the alleyway.

The blond cringed. It wasn't that he didn't like Demyx. It was that Demyx was one of the members who ignored the rule of trying to stay low among the inhabitants of the world. He followed his senior's lead, albeit a little more cautious than him. The Nobody raised his hand to his eye level, trying to block the sunlight from getting into his eyes. Even with his hood raised up, the sunlight still managed to bother his eyes.

"Well, you've been here before, Rox! How's about you lead today's mission?" Demyx grinned.

Roxas gave him a deadpan look. "Don't dump all of the mission on me…"

The mullet-haired Nobody laughed. "Worry not, Roxas. I'm right beside you!" he reassured as he slung his arm over Roxas' shoulders.

"Yeah," Roxas laughed, pushing Demyx's arm off of him. "I guess we can go to the Bailey… there's a lot of Heartless there." He said, turning his head to the direction of said place.

"Lead the way!" Demyx said in a sing-song tone.

The blond rolled his eyes before walking to his left. The town square was basically empty like the last time he visited. There were only a few people walking around and they didn't pay any attention to the two guys in black, which was a little strange since what they wore is a bit edgy and suspicious.

Roxas stopped for a brief moment when he recognized the place he was at. He stared at the small house between two buildings. It was a small old-looking house with a large closed window made out of wood. His blue eyes stared at the door as if he was waiting for someone to come out. He remembered the house pretty well. It was the house Hikari and her partner went to after they finished their battle against the Heartless.

"What's the matter with the house?" Demyx questioned, averting his gaze to the house as well.

The blond shook his head. "Nothing, nothing." He said before continuing his way to the Bailey.

Deymx groaned at the sight of more stairs. "Ugh… this world just _loves_ using stairs."

"Well… it's a great way to exercise." Roxas laughed nervously.

"But think of the elderly! They must have install an elevator or something…" Demyx huffed out, crossing his arms as the two Nobodies made their way up the stairs.

"Why do I get the feeling that this is for your own good and not for the world's elderly?" Roxas teased, a grin on his lips.

Deymx blinked. "Now you're getting it! So, you finally remembered some emotions?" he grinned, patting Roxas's back a few times.

"A little I guess…" Roxas answered truthfully.

Just like he said about the Heartless in the Bailey, a group of Heartless were seen around the area. The two Nobodies quickly summoned their weapons and lowered themselves to their signature fighting stance.

Demyx strummed his sitar loudly, summoning water to float around him. "Alright! Let's party hard!" he shouted before he strummed his sitar once more, commanding the water around him to attack the Heartless.

Roxas lunged forward along with Demyx's water clones. The older Nobody stood behind the lines as the younger one went for a close-range attack. He swung his keyblade at the Heartless, taking it out in one full swing. It was hard being a keyblade wielder in the Organization. He was the only one besides Xion who can 'free' the hearts from the Heartless. And since Xion lost her ability to wield the keyblade, he has to work twice as hard from before. He didn't mind covering for Xion at all. He was glad that he could help a friend out.

"Roxas! Heads up!" he heard Demyx shouted. The blond turned and saw a Heartless trapped inside of Demyx's water ball coming towards his way. He gripped his keyblade tighter and swing it against the water ball, slicing it in half along with the Heartless inside.

"Argh! Demyx!" Roxas shouted when the water dispersed, letting gravity took over. The water was dumped over the young Nobody, drenching him from head to toe.

"Ups! Sorry!" the older Nobody apologized.

Roxas gave him a frown before turning his attention back to the Heartless. He shook his head, trying to get the excess water out from his hair. He brought his keyblade to his front to shield him from the incoming attack. A small barrier was created in front of him as the large Heartless rammed into him, knocking him back. He skidded to a stop a few feet away from Demyx. More Heartless seemed to appear around them, making it more cramped than it was before.

The mullet-haired Nobody groaned, his hand covering his face. "I'm not cut out for this kind of job!" he whined out loudly.

The keyblade wielder's grip on the keyblade tighten as he glanced around. "The sooner we end this the better!" he quoted, letting out a battle cry.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari moved back when a Heartless jumped at her from bellow. She turned her attention to her left and raised her rod to block the attack from another Heartless. Her rod clashed against the Heartless' claws and she pushed it away. Before the Heartless could attack her again, it was smacked away by a metallic staff. Her eyes glanced up to look at the person who knocked the Heartless away.

"Thanks!" Hikari grinned at the woman.

Aerith smiled in return, "You're welcome." She twirled the staff in her hand and swung it hard across to slash the Heartless around them.

The brunette had her attention on her partner for the day. Aerith's as good as everyone in the committee. She could fight like everyone else and besides Merlin, her magic was better than anyone. It was rare to see Aerith fight with a staff, but she was amazing. Usually, she uses magic to defeat her opponents. And even though Aerith admitted that physical strength was not her best, she was still a pro at using the staff.

Hikari drew back her rod as far as she can before she threw it at the direction of the Heartless. "Take this!" she shouted.

Her rod spun around, taking out the Heartless in its' way before returning to her hand. She turned her head towards Aerith and quickly ran across to stood behind her, raising her rod to cast a barrier around them.

The barrier blocked the fire balls thrown at them. The fire quickly dispersed as soon as it made contact with the barrier. Aerith turned around and raised her hand after Hikari dismissed the barrier.

"Freeze!" Aerith casted Blizzard over the Heartless, freezing them in one spell.

Hikari dashed towards the frozen Heartless, swinging her rod at them, shattering them to millions of pieces before they disappear in black smoke. The brunette straightened her posture, summoning the rod away. "That's the last of 'em!" she cheerfully stated.

Aerith giggled. "Nice work."

Hikari turned around to face the young woman. "Hehe! You too! We did awesome today!" she thrust her fist up to the sky, a grin across her face. They actually covered a lot. They helped people tidy up their stores and plant flowers around town to make it more-lively, all the while taking care of the Heartless. Before Hollow Bastion, Radiant Garden was a place filled with flowers and fountains. The way how Aerith seemed passionate about planting flowers was understandable. Hikari helped as best as she can with flowers and plants, even though she wasn't a gardener. She wanted to see Hollow Bastion shine like it was before. "Maybe we should plant some more flowers around the town square… How about more dandelions?" she grinned, crossing her hands behind her head.

Aerith giggled behind her hand. "Dandelions? Why dandelions?" she asked.

The brunette shrugged. "I don't know… it's pretty and you can make a wish with it." She answered, her eyes glancing over to look at the wild dandelions that grew near the tree's roots.

"How about roses?" Aerith suggested.

Hikari gave a so-so gesture. "Errrr… I think I prefer other flowers than roses. It's thorny and stuff." She was still a bit bitter about Marluxia. Every time she sees a rose, she was reminded of the fact that one of the Organization members use roses to fight. She doesn't the hate the flower in general, just… bitter. "I like sunflowers. How about sunflowers?"

The older brunette nodded her head. "Sunflowers it is then." She agreed. "We can stop by Mog's shop on our way to Merlin's house." She said, leading the way.

A groan escaped Hikari's lips. "Him? Why him? His prices are outrageous!" she huffed out, crossing her arms over her chest. She learned the Moogle's name from Aerith around a few days ago when she was helping her do some shopping. "I can't even use the committee discount on him!"

Aerith laughed. "But you still buy things from him." she said.

"Only because he's the only Moogle around here and… some of his stuff are okay, I guess." The brunette grumbled under her breath, admitting that Mog had the best merchandise in Hollow Bastion. She sighed in defeat. "Okay, fine… I guess _some_ of his prices are reasonable…"

The young woman smiled.

"Ms. Aerith! What will it be today, kupo?" Mog the Moogle greeted cheerful when he spotted the young woman approaching him.

"Some sunflower seeds and four each of potions and ethers will do for today, Mog." Aerith replied, placing her hands on the counter.

"Coming right up, kupo!" Mog chirped.

Hikari gave the Moogle the stink eye. It was almost he was favoriting Aerith more from all the other committee members, including her. The Moogle returned back to the front, placing the items Aerith bought in a paper bag.

"Will that be all, Ms. Aerith, kupo?" Mog asked.

Aerith nodded her head. "Yes, how much will all of this cost?" she asked politely.

"That'll be 420 munny, kupo!" Mog answered and Aerith gave the Moogle the amount of munny needed to pay the items she bought.

Hikari gave the Moogle a strange look. "How much will ten potions be for me?" she asked out of the blue.

Mog turned to face her. "For you, it'll be 460 munny, kupo!" he replied cheerfully.

The brunette almost lost her balance. "Again?! Isn't one potion like 40 munny?!" she complained.

"It's to cover for the damage you did with Yuffie, kupo!" Mog said.

Hikari pinched the bridge of her nose. "It was a harmless prank, Mog. A harmless prank." She leaned against the counter. She remembered pranking Mog with Yuffie. It was a harmless little prank consist of water guns and water balloons. "We didn't even break anything in your shop."

Mog placed his tiny fingerless hand on his chest. "But it hurt my small heart, kupo…" he faked his hurt. He raised his head up, the bright look back across his face. "To make it up to me, I'm going to bump the prices up ten percent for you and Yuffie! Be glad it's only ten, kupo~!" he said in a sing-song tone.

Hikari slouched down to the counter. "It's better than a hundred…" she mumbled.

Aerith shook her head, a smile on her face. "We'll see you later, Mog. Have a nice day." She said, saying her goodbye to the Moogle.

"Have a good day as well, Ms. Aerith, kupo! You too, Hikari!" Mog replied.

The younger brunette waved her hand goodbye.

"Well, it was kind of your fault and Yuffie's." Aerith laughed a little, recalling the memory.

"Can't really blame me… it was a hot day. Mog should be thankful we cooled him down." Hikari puckered her lips out, blowing a raspberry.

Aerith shook her head with a smile. She shifted the bag in her hands to a more comfortable position. The young woman walked up the set of stairs and opened the door to Merlin's house.

Hikari walked up the three stairs to follow Aerith, but she stopped. The brunette felt something was off and she turned her head, tilting her head up to look at the Bailey's entrance. She turned just in time to see a man wearing a black coat entering the Bailey. She knew that black coat from anywhere.

"Hikari? Is something the matter?" Aerith asked, turning her body sideways as she held the door open.

The brunette turned her attention back to the woman. "Yeah, I just remembered I have to meet up with Mr. Scrooge again today." She said, jerking her thumb to the direction where Scrooge's shop is located. "You go on ahead, I'll come back right before dinner." She reassured.

"Be sure not to eat too much ice cream or else it will ruin your dinner." Aerith chided with a giggle.

As soon as Aerith closed the door, Hikari dashed towards the direction where she saw the black coat.

Questions went through her mind as she tried to figure out who was the one beneath the coat. An Organization member?

Was it Riku?

Or was it Roxas?

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Fuuh~! Thank Kingdom Hearts it's over!" Demyx sighed out, taking a seat on the bench.

Roxas huffed out tiredly. He couldn't agree more. It was hours after they started their mission and truth be told, they were beyond tired. True to Demyx's words, Hollow Bastion is a world filled with Heartless. This must've been the most hearts he had collected since he came to the Organization. The amount of hearts he collected should be enough to cover both his and Xion's as well, more even.

Wave after wave of Heartless, they finally finished defeating all of the them in the Bailey. They moved to another location since the amount of time they took in the Bailey was too long. That and both of them couldn't handle the amount of Heartless that kept on coming. The town had lesser amount of Heartless loitering around. It was almost four o'clock when they finished their mission.

Roxas joined Demyx on the bench. It was located beside the clock in the town square.

"Well, I guess it's time we call it a day! Let's RTC!" Demyx pushed himself up, a grin on his face.

Roxas tilted his chin up to look at Demyx. "You go on ahead… I think I'm gonna rest a little longer." He replied with a smile.

Demyx shrugged. "Suit yourself! See you back at the castle, Rox!" he turned around on his heels, heading straight for the alleyway where they once came.

The young Nobody watched his fellow Nobody walk inside the dark alley, disappearing from his line of sight. A sigh escaped his lips as he slouched in his seat. It was a little too early for him to go to the clock tower. The clock began to strike when the long hand landed on the number twelve. He listened as the clock strike twelve times before it completely stopped.

"Four already… Should I?" Roxas mumbled, staring at the direction of the old house. He debated whether or not he should visit the old house to find Hikari.

' _Wait… didn't those women say that Hikari is almost stationed near the castle?'_ A thought came to his mind. He remembered the gossip the women said about Hikari and Cloud patrolling near the castle almost every time. He turned his body around to face the castle. _'I have to.'_ he thought, standing up to his feet.

The Nobody made his way towards the castle, hoping to find the girl.

After going through the set of stairs, he finally made it to the Valley or as the committee call it 'The Check Point'. It was the end of the construction site. Beyond it was a wasteland that leads to the dark towers. He ignored all of the warning signs set around the site. It doesn't matter to him. He's a Nobody.

He stopped right at the middle, glancing left and right. He raised his hands up to his hood, pulling it down. The blond kept on looking left and right to find the girl, but there was no one in sight. He turned his head to look forward, staring at the path beyond the point.

' _Maybe she and Cloud went a little further…'_ Roxas thought as he walked towards the path.

Before he could even walk, a hand grabbed his wrist, stopping him from taking another step forward. The blond's eyes widened in surprised, he quickly tried to take back his hand, but the person won't budge. He turned his head and he stopped when he saw who it was.

"Are you crazy?! You can't go there!" Hikari shouted. Roxas stared at the girl with his jaw dropped. He could see so many emotions from the girl's eyes, but he can't actually name all of them. It was as if she was concern and worried for him, a Nobody. "Nobody or not, it's dangerous!" she continued, her hand still holding him in place.

Roxas was still too shocked to reply to her.

The brunette stared at the Nobody with a frown before looking away. "Let's go." She dragged him by his wrist, leading him back to the restoration site. She was surprised how willing the Nobody is when she kept on dragging him from the hazardous place. He was quiet the whole time she was leading him back to the town square. She planned to lead him to the Fountain Area but stopped when Roxas stopped moving. "What?" she turned around, releasing her hold on his wrist.

Roxas held his wrist.

Hikari noticed the look across Roxas' face. "S—Sorry… I didn't mean to hurt you…" she quickly apologized.

"Huh? No, no! It's not that!" Roxas finally spoke, shaking his head. He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "It's just that… I've finally get the chance to see you again…" he laughed a little.

Hikari's eyes widened.

 _It's been awhile since I last saw you._

For a moment there, she remembered the words Phantom Ventus said to her.

"Um… What happened after you left me on that bench?" Roxas asked.

The brunette cringed. She gave him an apologetic look as she run her fingers through her hair. "Sorry! I just don't know where else to put you! I don't want you to fall into the fountain and the ground's not comfortable too—!"

Roxas laughed. "That's not what I meant!"

"You're… not mad?" Hikari blinked. She was sure that he would be mad at her for leaving him alone.

The Nobody shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not at all. I wanted to thank you, for watching over me and for the jacket obviously…" he scratched the back of his neck. "I… kind of forgot to bring it with me… sorry…"

"It's okay." Hikari replied.

Silence fell between the two.

Roxas cleared his throat, making the girl turn to face him. "Hi…kari," he called out. The name still felt strange to him. It stopped him for a second. He was hesitant to ask her. He finally found the girl and he couldn't even ask her anything. This was his chance to find out about his past. "There's something I want to—!"

The two turned their head when they heard a scream.

"Mr. Scrooge!" Hikari furrowed her eyebrows as she gritted her teeth. "Sorry. Can this wait?" she glanced over to Roxas before she made a dash towards Scrooge's shop is located.

Roxas reached his hand out to the girl. "W—Wait!" but she was long gone. The blond looked down for a moment before lifting his gaze up, a determined look across his face. He ran towards the direction where Hikari went, following her to 'Mr. Scrooge'.

When Hikari arrived at Scrooge's shop, she was greeted with the sight of Heartless trying to wreck the duck's business. She quickly summoned her rod as she ran closer to the shop.

"Get away from me shop, ye no good Heartless!" Scrooge waved his walking cane around, trying to scare the Heartless away.

The brunette threw her rod at the Heartless that jumped at Scrooge. Her rod slashed through the Heartless before it returned to her grasp. Scrooge turned his head to the direction where the magic rod came and he couldn't be happier to see the teenage girl coming to help him.

"I hope you guys are planning to pay for that!" Hikari shouted as she swung the rod at the Heartless in front of the freezer. She skidded to a stop in front of Scrooge, standing protectively in front of the elderly. "Leave this to me, Mr. Scrooge! I'll handle these bug-eyed freaks!" she said, glancing over her shoulder to look at the duck.

The duck nodded his head. "Aye, I'm counting on ye, lass!" he said, running back inside his shop for shelter.

Hikari lowered herself to a fighting stance, her rod gripped tightly in her hand. She looked over to her right and saw Roxas beside her, his weapon drawn out. The boy gave her a reassuring smile before he turned his head back to look at the Heartless in front of them. She stared at him for as moment before turning her attention back to the Heartless again.

Roxas made the first move. He ran towards the Heartless, swinging his keyblade around. Hikari stayed behind to defend Scrooge's shop from any incoming Heartless. The brunette raised her rod, casting thunder. She swung her rod at the paralyzed Heartless and took them all out one swing after another. She huffed out, taking a few seconds to breathe. She glanced over to the Nobody who was doing better than she was. His stamina was amazing. He didn't get tired easily like she did.

The blond glanced over to Hikari. "Behind you!" he shouted, turning around to dash towards the girl.

Hikari quickly ducked down and barely dodged the Heartless' claws as it went over her head. She lunged forward, dodge-rolling away from being cornered by the creatures. She stopped and pointed her rod at the direction of the Heartless.

"Firaga!" she shouted and a large ball of fire was shot at the Heartless. In a few seconds, the fire burned the Heartless, taking all of them out. The brunette stood up and glanced over to Roxas, giving him a reassuring smile. Her smile soon disappeared. "Roxas! Watch out!" she shouted, running towards him.

The blond turned around, only to be hit by the Large Body. It sent him back flying. Hikari caught him, but she was thrown back as well from the force. The two landed on the ground with a loud thud with Roxas' keyblade landing beside them.

"Argh…" Roxas held his head as he supported himself with his elbow.

Hikari rubbed the back of her head as she sat up. Her eyes widened when she saw the large Heartless was in front of them. Her hand quickly shot out to the nearest weapon around.

Roxas' keyblade.

The brunette jumped up to her feet and lunged forward, thrusting the keyblade through the Heartless.

It wasn't long until the Heartless disappeared, leaving a heart behind its' trail.

Hikari stared at the heart as it floated away.

The girl glanced down at the keyblade in her hand before making her way to where Roxas' is.

"Cure!" Hikari raised the keyblade, casting cure over the injured Nobody. She kneeled down and offered her hand for the blond to take. "You okay?" she asked.

Roxas nodded his head, taking Hikari's hand. "Thanks." He said as Hikari helped him up. His eyes glanced over to his keyblade in Hikari's hand. "You can wield the keyblade too?" he asked, pointing his finger at the keyblade.

Hikari raised the keyblade and shrugged. "I guess…" she answered and handed the keyblade back to the owner. She bends down to take her rod from the floor, inspecting it from any damaged caused from before.

A laugh escaped Roxas' lips. "So that's why you were so surprised when I summoned the keyblade… it's because you're a wielder too!" he summoned the keyblade away as Hikari did the same with her rod.

The brunette scratched the back of her neck sheepishly, averting her gaze. "Maybe haha…"

"Thank ye so much, lass!"

Roxas turned to face where the voice came, but a hand stopped him. "W-Whoa!" he exclaimed in surprised when Hikari pulled his hood to cover his hair and face from the newcomer. He blinked confusedly when Hikari stood in front of him. She was shorter than him. Her height was around his eyes, making it difficult to see the person. "What are you—," he was about to ask.

"Staying low is your priority, right?" Hikari whispered, looking at him from over her shoulder.

Well… she was right about that.

"Oh! I see ye have a new friend! Thank ye for helping me out, lads!" Scrooge walked towards the two, a smile on his face.

"Umm… No problem." Roxas replied.

Hikari laughed. "He's shy."

"I'm not shy." The Nobody quickly retorted.

Scrooge laughed. "'Ey, how about I gave ye two some reward? Ice cream, my treat?" he said as he walked towards the fridge outside.

Roxas glanced over to Hikari who shrugged her shoulder and followed the duck to the fridge. The Nobody soon followed the brunette's lead, standing beside her as the duck opened the large fridge or freezer in this situation. The Nobody shivered when the cold breeze of the freezer went out. His blue eyes skimmed through the different colors of the ice cream inside. There were many flavors labeled bellow the ice creams. He never heard of peanut butter supreme.

"Another sea-salt, lass?" Scrooge took out a blue ice cream, offering it to the brunette.

Hikari gave a look. "Not… today, Mr. Scrooge. It's still a bit too salty for my taste. I'll try out your new recipe tomorrow…" she said and Scrooge gave a nod, putting the sea-salt flavored ice cream back into the freezer. The girl leaned her head closer to the Nobody, covering her mouth with her hand. "Don't take the sea-salt… it's too salty for anyone. It's still being tested." She whispered.

Roxas covered his mouth as well. He was a little bummed that sea-salt wasn't available. "Well, what do you recommend?" he whispered back.

Hikari grinned. "I'll have chocolate!" she exclaimed cheerfully.

"One chocolate coming up!" Scrooge laughed and took the chocolate flavored one out, giving it to the brunette. "And you lass?" he turned to face the hooded boy.

"O—Oh um… I guess chocolate too?" Roxas replied.

"Here ya go, lad. Enjoy!" Scrooge said, handing him the ice cream.

"Thanks, Mr. Scrooge! I'll see you tomorrow!" Hikari waved goodbye, leading Roxas away from the shop.

Scrooge waved his hand goodbye. "See ya tomorrow, lass!"

Roxas stayed quiet, ice cream in hand as Hikari leaded the way. He glanced around, remembering the twist and turns they took. There were a few spots that he remembered from the last visit. She was leading him towards the place where she first comforted him. It wasn't long until they reached the Fountain Area. He stopped to observe the place as Hikari made her way towards one of the fountain. Now that he has a better look around the area, it was actually a really nice place to hang around, despite most of the fountains were still being built.

Hikari sat on the fountain. "You're just gonna stand there?" she asked, opening the ice cream wrap.

The Nobody shook his head and followed the brunette, sitting down beside her. Silence fell between the two. He glanced over to Hikari who was silently eating her ice cream while gazing forward. He averted his gaze to look at what Hikari was staring at and his eyes widened.

It was a view of the castle with the afternoon sky in the background.

"Awesome view, right?" Hikari broke the silence.

"Yeah…"

"This place used to be so dark. I hated it." The brunette continued. "But now, ever since he saved the worlds… Everything went back to the way it was." she sighed out, a smile on her lips.

Roxas stared down at his ice cream. "I see…"

"You… reminded me of someone, Roxas."

The blond turned his attention to the girl. "I do?" finally, he was able to learn more about who he used to be. "Tell me, Hikari… do you know who I was?" he asked, placing a hand over his chest.

Hikari stopped eating her ice cream and stared down at her hands. "No… Not really… You just reminded me of someone." She stated more clearly this time.

Roxas slumped his shoulders in disappointment. "Oh…" he sighed out and the two became silent again. "I… When I first came to the Organization, I have no memories at all. I don't remember my home. I don't remember anything. Not even my name… No one can answer my questions. I do what I was told to do… to collect hearts to be whole." he admitted. He didn't know why he was talking, it just came out.

"I… see… It must be hard…"

The brunette stared at the Nobody. Now that she heard Roxas's story, she felt kind of sorry for him. It must be hard to wake up not knowing anything. The atmosphere around them was heavy and she couldn't really handle it.

It was a little hard trying to get out of the mood.

"You ice cream is gonna melt." Hikari suddenly said, pointing her finger at the ice cream in Roxas's hand, still wrapped in the clear wrapper. She wasn't trying to be ignorant, but she needed to lighten the mood. "Don't tell me you don't like chocolate?" she laughed a little.

Roxas smiled a little before opening the wrapper. "This is actually my first taste."

Hikari gave a loud and dramatic gasp. "Impossible! How could you have NOT taste the deliciousness of chocolate?!" she said dramatically. "Chocolate is like the best dessert if the history of desserts! The sweetness and bitterness is to die for!" she added.

The Nobody burst out laughing.

"Really?" Roxas sniggered.

"Try it!"

He took a bite of it.

"So, how is it?" Hikari asked, her eyes gleaming.

Roxas hummed, tasting the flavor. "I'll give it a five over ten… I like sea-salt better." He rated and Hikari gave him a look.

"Are you kidding me? I had enough saltiness in ice cream! Mr. Scrooge made me taste his sea-salt ice cream for days in a row! I don't want to complain, but it's kinda ruining my taste buds!"

"What? That's like the best job ever! How could you not be happy about being a sea-salt ice cream tester?!"

Hikari blinked.

Roxas stared.

They both laughed.

"Hahaha!" Hikari wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes as the laughter subsided. The brunette smiled and bite the stick on her ice cream as her hands went to grab her camera. She pulled the black camera out from the case and positioned it away from her and Roxas with the lens facing them. "Roxas! Say cheese!" she said a little muffled.

"Hmm?"

 _Click_

Roxas blinked confusedly, swallowing the ice cream he had chewed off from the stick. "What was that about?" he questioned while Hikari began to tamper with the device in her hands. His eyes widened when he saw two pieces of paper coming out from the small device. "What is that?" he asked curiously.

Hikari waved the piece of papers in the air and gave it one of it to Roxas. She set the camera and her picture in the middle of where they sat. Her hand held the ice cream stick hanging from her mouth and she quickly finished the ice cream before answering. "It's a picture. Don't you know what a picture is?"

Roxas shook his head 'no'.

"Well… a picture is a picture? I'm not good at describing things…" Hikari sighed out. She watched as Roxas stared at the picture and she smiled. "You can keep that one, that way you can always look at it to remember the day we met. A memory, I guess." She explained.

Roxas placed the picture down to his lap. "It's too bad we're on the opposite side… we might not be able to hang out like this next time."

The brunette stared at the Nobody. What Roxas said was true. They're enemies and the next time they meet might be in the battlefield. And just when she was beginning to like Roxas' company. Truth be told, she didn't want to fight Roxas or even Axel.

"Wait!" She shouted, surprising Roxas when she stood up abruptly. An idea crossed her mind when she thought about the red-haired Nobody. She turned around to face Roxas, a bright grin across her face. "How about we make a deal?" she asked, holding the ice cream on her left hand as her other hand was stretched out to Roxas.

Roxas tilted his head. "A deal?" he echoed.

Hikari nodded her head and she sat back down on the fountain. "Yeah! From today and forward, whatever happens between us, stays between us!" she said, pausing for a moment to take a breath. "I won't tell anything about you and you won't tell anyone about me. It's a secret between the two of us!" she said happily.

"That's a good idea! That way, we can hang around like this again!" Roxas quickly agreed.

The girl nodded her head once.

"Let's meet again tomorrow afternoon."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Scrapbook Entry 17 entered._


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: a new chapter! 😃 thank you guys so much for the awesome reviews, reads, favs and alerts!

There won't be a Scrapbook Entry until the next chapter!

Please read Little Adventures because this chapter will have a few references to the manga!

Also, I will be posting Hikari's designs in different worlds like Halloween Town and etc.

Guest 1: maybe haha! He sure seemed to have that side!

Guest 2: hmm, I think they would be a whole lot different! I do plan on making an opening when I learn how to use 3D modeling…

Gry21: Those are great ideas! It gave me a few ideas. Thank you for sharing.

c-guest: hehe thank you! (same here! I always lost at bets). It ain't gonna be pretty if the other Organization members find out! Yeah, you'll see him soon, Hikari! Nope, not yet Xd

Guest 4: I'll see what I can do ^_^

Pimsan: thank you! I have a few crossover stories, but they aren't the best… you can check them out at my account

Mysterygirl145: Thank you! Oh! I love that theme song!

Guest 5: Ooooh! That's interesting!

Lulu9814: Thank you!

Draconicflare: Ah! Hello! Welcome to fanfiction! I can' wait for 2018! It's going to be an awesome year! Oh yeah! Now that you mention it, it is 13 XD.  
aww thank you so much! Lol, she does have that protective side too!

TheIrishWriter: thank you! Maybe not, her parents remember her, but they don't exactly remember Sora and it makes her kind of guilty and awkward.

Kingdom Hearts © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 14  
a new world

* * *

Hikari sat on top of a boulder as a tired sigh escaped her lips. She slid the safety goggles from her eyes to hang lose around her neck before stretching both her arm above her head and a loud 'pop' was heard. She let out another sigh, slouching on where she sat.

"I feel like we're digging in a mine or something." Hikari said as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Leon hit the top of the chisel, breaking a part of the large boulder. "You're not wrong though." He grunted. The man leaned the hammer against the boulder and bends down to pick up the pieces of the boulder that had fallen apart from his hit. He turned to face the girl, lounging on top of a boulder a few feet away. "Mind giving me a hand here?" he asked.

"Okay," The brunette jumped down from where she sat and walked towards the man. The two picked the stones and placed them inside the wheelbarrow. Beside the wheelbarrow they just filled up, three more that were filled with debris and rocks could be seen. "Another one filled up!" she clapped her hands together, patting the dust from her gloves.

"Oh! Another one filled! You two work fast!" A voice made the two committee members turn their head to the entrance of the hall. A few men ranging from early twenties to late thirties were seen pushing empty cases of wheelbarrows into the site.

Hikari grinned, giving a thumbs up. "We sure do!" she replied to the man.

The man laughed, placing the empty wheelbarrow with the others. "Well, I guess we have to work faster to keep up with your pace!" he tousled Hikari's hair. He raised the handles on the wheelbarrow filled with debris and stones and pushed it a little forward.

"How are things going outside?" Leon asked the group.

"Everything's going smoothly! It's a bit messy from the debris and rocks we brought from here, but everyone's helping to clear it out." Another man, a man in his early twenties replied. He was the youngest out of the others, aside from Yuffie and Hikari.

The scarred man nodded his head. "That's good to hear."

"Well, keep those rocks coming! We'll be back later!" the first man said cheerfully, pushing the wheelbarrow to the hallway where they once came in.

"You got it, Mr. B!" Hikari shouted, waving her hand.

They were volunteers.

A few days ago, the committee announced that they needed volunteers to help restore Hollow Bastion's castle. It was to quicken the restoration process. Before the committee announced that they needed volunteers, people were already volunteering themselves to help around, but most of them were declined because the castle was still off limits.

Now, ever since the committee starting to place their members to the Valley and the Restoration Site, the Heartless have been kept at bay, reducing the Heartless appearing around the town and the castle. As for the volunteers helping the restoration of the castle, they had to limit the people helping since the committee members has to keep track of the people inside the restoration site. They were only allowed to go in groups of three to four people and stay near a committee member if they want to move from one point to the other. Even though, the castle was now open for the volunteers, they still have to be aware of the Heartless.

The restoration starts from nine in the morning till three in the afternoon. For the committee, they have to be there an hour earlier since they have to clear around the path from Heartless for the volunteers to safely arrive at the site. Regardless of the danger, the volunteers wanted to help. From morning till three in the afternoon, they worked hard to clear the hallways from the boulders and debris.

A few parts of the castle entrance have also started to be rebuild.

Hikari was proud of the community in Hollow Bastion.

"Nice to see that people are so excited to help." Hikari grinned, crossing her hands behind her head.

Leon nodded his head in agreement. "Yes."

The brunette turned her head. "Still bummed out that we can't exactly use magic to make all of these rocks disappear…" she sighed out.

"Merlin said so himself… It was as if something was blocking his magic and the only way to clear it, is by doing it manually." Leon answered. He walked back towards where he left his hammer.

"Maybe this place still has some of Maleficent's magic or something." Hikari followed Leon's lead, taking her hammer as well before standing beside the man.

"Probably," Leon nodded his head and waited for Hikari to place her safety goggles on before continuing to work on the boulder he left off. "But I wouldn't mind if Merlin figured a way to clean all of this." He admitted and hit the chisel with a loud clang.

The hammer in Hikari's hands also slipped out from her grasp when she raised it up. The girl placed the hammer down, facing Leon with a dumbfounded look. "Hold on. Back track! Did I just hear what I think I hear?" a goofy grin made its' way up to her lips as she leaned her weight against the hammer.

Leon snorted in reply, ignoring the brunette's childish antics.

"Did the Stickler Squall just said that he is willing to use magic to do his dirty work?" Hikari sniggered, a teasing look across her face. "I didn't know today's Opposite Day!"

"Shut it," Leon coughed into his fist, earning a laugh from the girl. The man raised his hand and flicked Hikari by her nose. The brunette gave a loud 'hey!' when he did it. "And it's Leon, _not_ Squall." He emphasized, his arms crossed.

Hikari rubbed her rose. "Okay, okay, _Leon_ the Stickler." She corrected before laughing again. The man beside her rolled his eyes before he continued to work again. Her laughter turned to chuckles and soon the only sound could be heard of was Leon's hammer hitting the chisel. The brunette stared at the hammer in her hand. "Hey, Leon?" she called out.

"Hmm?" the man hummed, breaking a piece of the boulder.

"What do you think is beyond this hallway?" she asked suddenly, staring at the mountain of debris and boulders blocking the hallway's entrance.

Leon stopped. "That's what we want to find out." He placed the hammer down, staring at the blocked path. "Our leader and his apprentices were so secretive about what they do behind closed doors. We never know what they were doing. No one was allowed in the castle." He said truthfully.

' _Never knew a nice guy like him would be so secretive.'_ Hikari thought, raising her hammer to hit the chisel on the crack of the boulder. A three year-old shouldn't be able to remember much of their days, but due to Naminé's powers, she was able to remember everything that happened. She knew Leon was referring to Ansem. The guy was nice enough to let her pick all the flowers she wants in his garden. Hearing him and his apprentices being secretive and mysterious was kind of surprising for her. "Maybe this path will take us to his office or something." She said, hitting the chisel again.

"Who knows? You might be right."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was three o'clock in the afternoon.

"Thanks for today!"

"See you guys tomorrow!"

Hikari watched the volunteers went their own separate ways after saying their goodbyes to the committee. It was almost like this. Before the clock strike three, they would already head back from the restoration site to regroup in front of Merlin's house, or in this case, the Restoration Committee's main base.

"Man! What a long day!" Yuffie said, stretching her arms above her head. She turned around to head inside Merlin's house. Both Leon and Hikari joined the young girl, walking up the steps to the door. "I wonder what Aerith has for us today? I hope it's something sweet! I need some sweets after all that work!" she grinned.

"Yeah! Maybe some chocolate cake or blueberry pie!" Hikari agreed. Both Yuffie and Hikari were known for their sweet tooth. It wasn't that much of a surprise to the committee to find that the two youngest members likes sweets the most rather than a salad.

Leon rolled his eyes, following the two girls from behind. "You two have to cut down on those sweets… You both are going to get diabetes or something." The man chided.

Hikari blew a raspberry. "Psssshhh! This is why we should enjoy it before we get old!" she reasoned and high-fived with Yuffie.

"You might not have it now, but you will if you two don't cut the sweets. You should prevent it so you _don't_ get it in the future." The scarred man smartly replied.

Both Yuffie and Hikari groaned. "Yes, _dad_ …"

Leon walked passed the two girls and pushed the door open, ignoring Yuffie's and Hikari's comment. As the man entered the house, he was greeted by the usual. Cloud sitting behind the table, Cid in front of the computer and Aerith in the kitchen. The scarred man placed his weapon near the door before walking further into the room. One thing that Aerith doesn't like is weapons at the table. The man pulled out a chair and sat on the opposite of Cloud.

"Welcome back," Aerith smiled, placing a glass of barley tea in front of the man.

Leon nodded his head in reply.

"So! How was today, Aerith, Cloud, Gramps?" Yuffie asked excitedly, jumping into her seat. She propped her chin up with her hand as the other held the glass of barley tea.

Cid grunted his reply, "The usual, kiddo."

"Why would you like to know?" Cloud asked, his arms crossed against his chest. He had his eyes closed and his nose tucked inside his red scarf. The blond wasn't exactly the brightest of personality in the group. Though, he might sometimes be gloomy and standoff-ish, he was always around when one is in trouble. He could've walked away from day one if he finds the committee getting in his way, but he never did. The man is just too stubborn to admit that he likes being in the committee.

Hikari snorted, "Don't worry, Yuff. Cloud's just being a stick in the mud 'cuz he has to wake up at six today! The sleeping beauty didn't get his eight hours of—!" before she could even finish her sentence, a hand slapped her at the back of her head. "OUCH! Hey! What was that for?!" the girl glared at the man as she rubbed the spot where the man had hit her.

Cloud sat back on his chair with his arms crossed. "For speaking nonsense."

The brunette grumbled under her breath, rubbing the back of her head.

Cid snorted in laughter. "Should've known by now that he would hit you whenever you say or do something that offended him, kid!" the man turned in his swivel seat, leaning forward.

Hikari turned to face the man, a smug looks across her face. "I take pride in that." She grinned as Yuffie laughed and Leon shook his head.

"Here you go," Aerith surprised the brunette with a plastic bag in front of her face. "All packed and ready to go." The woman continued.

"Ummm… what's packed and ready to go?" The young girl backed away a little and blinked, staring at the bag Aerith had given her. She gingerly took the bag with a confused look across her face. She stared at Aerith's face before peeking inside the bag. Inside, a blue plastic container box and two bottles of packed barley tea could be seen. "Uhh… You're not sending me back to elementary school… right?" she said unsurely.

Aerith giggled. "No, silly! It's for you and your friend." She replied.

Hikari blinked.

Her…friend?

Roxas?

The brunette stiffened a little.

The young woman went back into the kitchen and come back a few seconds later with a tray of sandwiches. "I heard from Mr. Scrooge that you've been seeing someone lately." She calmly said, placing the tray on the table.

"Ooooo!" Yuffie jumped out from her seat and quickly went over to Hikari. "Ohoho! So, this is what you've been up to? Who is it? Is it someone we know? Is it a guy? But you're still thirteen, a bit early to have a boyfriend, don't you think?" she draped her arm around Hikari's neck as her other hand was poking Hikari's cheek, giving a teasing look at the younger girl.

Leon raised an eyebrow at the youngest. "I guess… Teenage girls are teenage girls..." he said.

"I feel sorry for the guy." Cloud commented.

The brunette flashed both Leon and Cloud glares. "I don't have one!" Hikari denied, her cheeks reddening. "He's a friend!"

Cid burst out laughing. "It's been years since we have something like this!"

"What does that supposed to mean? I mean it! He's just a friend." Hikari huffed out.

Yuffie giggled. "So, just a friend, huh?"

"Yuffie," Aerith chided, placing her hands on her hips as she gave Yuffie a small smile. The black-haired girl backed away and gave a whistle, jabbing Hikari with her elbow, all the while giving her looks as she went back to her seat. The woman made her way to Hikari, placing her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Well, either way, I hope he likes it. Tell me what he thinks, okay?" she gave the girl a wink.

Hikari covered her face with her hand. "Not you too, Aerith…" she sighed out before heading towards the door. "I'm off then!"

"Details! Details!" Yuffie shouted before the door closed.

The brunette let out a deep sigh, standing in front of the door. She took a deep breath before walking towards town square. She still has around half an hour before meeting up with Roxas by the Fountain Area, but it doesn't hurt for her to be early once in a while. This was actually her fifth meetup with Roxas. She knew that they can't actually meet every day, so they meetup ever two days once at four o'clock in the afternoon at the Fountain Area.

It wasn't a long walk to reach the Fountain Area, but she took her time walking through the town square. It was looking more and more bright each passing day. The flowers Aerith planted began to sprout from the ground and some even bloomed a bright red.

Once she reached the Fountain Area, she was greeted with the sight of a cloaked young man. He sat on the fountain, facing the castle. The young man heard footsteps coming his way. He turned his head and he pulled his hood down, a grin was seen on his lips.

"…you're surprisingly not late." Roxas laughed.

Hikari gave him an offended look. "I'm not late. You're just too early, and you are." She retorted and took a seat beside the boy. The plastic bag was placed between them and she took the box out along with the two bottles. "I have some food." She said, handing the bottle to the boy.

Roxas took the bottle and opened the cap. "Thanks!"

' _PB &J? It's been awhile since I ate these…'_ Hikari thought as she took one piece out from the box. She took a bite from the triangle cut sandwich and turned her gaze to the boy sitting next to her. "You've been rather early lately. Let me guess, solo?" she asked after she swallowed.

The blond nodded his head. "You guessed it." He took a bite from the sandwich. After he swallowed, he drank the barley tea. "I don't know why I get so many solo missions lately…" he sighed out.

"You don't like working alone?" Hikari took another bite from her sandwich.

Roxas shook his head. "I think I like working with the others better…" he admitted. He preferred to work together with Axel or Xion, but even being paired with the sarcastic Xigbar and the lazy Demyx were better than working alone. "I always like your system better. You always work together." He smiled.

Hikari grinned. "Gotta keep each other's back!" she said turning the cap off from the bottle. She tipped the bottle up to her mouth, gulping down the refreshing tea. "Working alone is a bit hard since we have to work twice as hard." She sighed out.

"Now you just sound like Demyx." The boy laughed, making the brunette smile a little. They were pretty much very open with who they're around with. They tell each other about their day and their interaction with their friends. At first, Hikari was really surprised that Roxas was friends with Axel. It was expected really. From how Roxas told her about his friends, she was relieved that Axel was doing okay. "You should've seen the look on his face when he was paired with Xaldin! It was hilarious!" he sniggered.

"Sounds to me Demyx is like the joke of the group." Hikari snorted, a snigger escaped her lips.

Roxas shrugged. "Probably right, but I guess he's pretty okay with fighting when he wants to." He replied before finishing his sandwich. "So, I heard you're working at the castle now?" he asked, taking a sip from his drink.

"Yeah, Leon decided that the sooner we clear out the stuff blocking the hallways, the faster we can begin renovating it." Hikari replied. She took a deep breath and let it out, her arms crossed over her chest. "But it's pretty much harder than it looks because we can't use any magic to move it." She complained.

"That's tough." Roxas said. "No wonder I smell something funny." He grinned as he pinched his nose.

"Wha—," Hikari turned to Roxas with a flabbergasted look. "HEY! I'm offended!" she shouted, pointing a finger accusingly at the Nobody.

Roxas laughed.

When Hikari was about to retort, something glowed inside of her pouch. She quickly took out the item that glowed and her eyes widened when it was the Star Shard.

Roxas stopped laughing when the light began to get into his eyes. "Hey, what's that—!" his eyes widened in surprised when the star shaped object suddenly glowed brightly, blinding them both.

In a flash, they disappeared into the sky.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Ah!"

Hikari exclaimed in surprise when she was thrown into the water by the Star Shard. She quickly swam up to the surface and took a deep breath. She wiped the excess water from her face and glanced around the waters. It was the ocean she realized. She panicked when she realized that she wasn't holding the Star Shard anymore.

"The Star Shard—!" Hikari gasped, looking around for the item to see if it was floating near her. She took a deep breath and dipped her head into the water, trying to look for the blue and green item in the sea of blue. She popped her head back up and slicked back her bangs. "Wait… Wasn't Roxas with me?!" she panicked yet again when she noticed her friend was missing.

The brunette quickly dived into the water. She looked around her surroundings and before she knew it, she found someone drifting to the bottom. It was a bit hard to spot the person since it was darker at the bottom. She went back up to the surface one more time before swimming down to reach her drowning friend.

She was an excellent swimmer. She lived in an island surrounded by the sea. It was one of the reasons she was a good swimmer.

Roxas was struggling to swim up to the surface, but each time he tried, he just sunk deeper into the ocean. He was beginning to ran out of air and his vision became blurry. At first, he saw the star object sinking down. He knew that it belonged to Hikari, so he tried to grab it. But as he sunk deeper, he realized that it was getting harder to swim back up. He blinked a few times when he saw Hikari drawing closer and closer towards him. Without a second wasted, she grabbed his wrist and wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she swam back up as fast as she can.

Not a minute later, they arrived at the surface.

"Roxas! You okay?" Hikari shouted, turning her head to look at the Nobody.

The blond coughed a few times. "Y-Yeah…" he croaked out before coughing again.

"You can't swim? How can you cannot swim?!" Hikari exclaimed, furrowing her eyebrows at him.

Roxas gave Hikari a small glare, almost as if he was saying 'have you forgot that I don't remember anything, even swimming'.

The brunette turned her gaze away, trying to find land. "Well, let's go find land first." Her eyes caught the sight of a sandy beach. It was a long swim to the beach, but it was better than floating in the sea. "Let's go there." She pointed her finger at the direction of land.

"I can't swim." Roxas reminded the young girl.

"Just hang on to me then." Hikari said as Roxas wrapped his arms around the girl's neck. It was harder to swim with someone on her back, but at least he wasn't panicking.

"Sorry I didn't get your star thing…" Roxas suddenly apologized.

Hikari glanced over her shoulder. "Nah… it's cool. Don't worry about it, what matters is that you're safe." She flashed him a reassuring grin.

After a long swim to reach the beach, they finally made it.

As soon as their feet could touch the bottom, Roxas quickly moved to support Hikari. He knew that she was exhausted after the long swim, and to top it off, she had to support him too. Compared to him, Hikari did more hard-labor than he did. At the morning, she has to clear up the way to the restoration site, help clean the castle, and then this. It surprised him that she hasn't collapsed yet from the hard work that she had been doing since she woke up.

"You… okay?" Roxas asked worriedly, watching Hikari lay on the sand with her eyes closed. "Thanks for the rescue… again." he added.

Hikari gave him a thumbs-up. "Yeah… no prob…" She wheezed out. She let out a grunt before pushing herself to a sitting position. "All in the days work! This is nothing compared to Phil's workout program!" she let out a short laugh, squeezing the water out from her hair.

Roxas smiled a little. His eyes wondered to the beach and his eyes widened when he saw a few ocean-themed Heartless behind them. He quickly stood up, surprising the brunette. The Nobody stood in front of the girl, his keyblade in hand. "Let me handle this!" he shouted, lowering himself to a fighting position.

Before Hikari could reply, the Nobody lunged forward, taking out the Heartless in front of him. The brunette watched Roxas took out the Heartless one by one in each swing. She tried to stand up to help him take care of the Heartless, but it was a lot harder for her to move her tired legs.

"Roxas!" Hikari warned. She summoned her rod into her hand and threw it at the direction of the Heartless. Her rod killed the Heartless that was about to jump at the Nobody. The blue rod spun back to its' owner. "Freeze!" she casted, pointed her rod at the number of Heartless.

Roxas swung his keyblade at the froze Heartless, smashing it into thousands of pieces. The blond summoned his keyblade away once the area was clear from the Heartless. He walked back to Hikari and kneeled down beside her.

"Even when you can't walk, you're still trying to help." Roxas laughed, complimenting the girl. "You're really stubborn."

Hikari grinned, summoning her rod away, "Hey, can't let you have all the fun."

"You are a keybearer." A deep voice startled the two teens. The both turned their head to look at the sea and they jaw dropped when they saw a white-haired muscular aged man standing in what seemed to be a pillar made from the water around him. The man continued to drew closer to the two teens with a trident in his hand. "The two of you are not from this world, correct?"

"Yeah?" Roxas said skeptically, standing in front of Hikari.

"Bow!" a voice whispered.

"Huh?" Hikari responded, glancing around to find the source. From the corners of her eyes, she saw something red jumping up and down beside her. She blinked. It was a talking crab. "What?" she asked the crab in a whisper too.

"You're speaking to His Highness! King Triton! Ruler of Atlantica!" The crab whispered again.

"What?!" Hikari blinked in surprise, making Roxas raise an eyebrow at her. She pushed herself up to kneel on one knee and placed her right hand over her heart. "Please excuse us, Your Majesty. Where are our manners? My name's Hikari and this is my friend." she bowed her head in respect.

Roxas copied what she did. "I'm Roxas… Your Majesty?" he said unsurely. He didn't know how to greet a royalty. Come to think of it, he never talked to a King before, let alone see one. The only one close enough to be treated with so much respect is Xemnas, and he rarely sees him too.

The King raised his hand and Hikari stood up, making Roxas stood up as well.

"Pardon me for asking, Your Majesty, but is there something that you require from us?" Hikari asked politely.

The Nobody stared at his friend with a baffled look. She was never this formal around anyone. It was another side he had yet to see.

Triton let out a soft sigh before turning his gaze to the horizon, staring out into the sea. "Indeed. I'm afraid those creatures have been causing my kingdom enough trouble." He admitted, turning back to look at the two teens. "We need your keyblade to take care of those creatures."

Hikari turned to Roxas, giving him a look.

"I guess I can help out…" Roxas answered, rubbing the back of his neck. "But Hikari has to come along too." He quickly added, pointing his finger at the girl standing beside him.

Triton nodded. "Your aid will be most welcomed. Step forward, child." He ordered and the two teens walked into the water until the level reached their torso.

Hikari hummed. "I just realized… How are we gonna breathe under water?" she said, turning to face Roxas.

"I don't know… I thought I know what you were doing…" Roxas replied.

The crab jumped on to the rock beside the two teens. "You seemed to have forget that this is King Triton! He wields the legendary trident that has powerful and magical abilities!" he whispered, covering his mouth with one of his pincer.

Triton raised his trident. It began to emit a glowing light and a sound could be heard when the trident was pointed at the two teens. It shot a ray of golden light at them. It didn't hurt them one bit, but it was enough to make them blind for a moment. Both Roxas and Hikari closed their eyes tightly when the light covered them from head to toe.

Roxas slowly opened his eyes and they adjusted to the light. "What was that?" he mumbled, rubbing his eyes. "Hey, Hikari—! Hikari?!" he turned his head and the brunette was gone.

"I'm here!" He heard Hikari's voice. The blond looked down and his eyes widened in surprise. Hikari was there, but she wasn't exactly human anymore. Instead of legs, a tail replaced them. She moved the tail up and down, watching it splash the water. "This is so cool!" she squealed, her eyes shining in excitement.

"W—What?" Roxas took a step back. "You're… a fish?"

"Mermaid! I'm a mermaid! Not a fish!" Hikari corrected, a grin on her face.

Triton placed a hand on his chin. "Strange…"

"Why didn't the boy turn to a merman, Your Majesty?" the crab asked, staring at the boy with wide eyes and jaw slacked.

Hikari turned to Roxas. "Maybe it's your coat." She pointed her finger at him. She had the same coat back at Hollow Bastion. It was given to her by DiZ. She didn't know what kind of materials were used to make the coat, but she heard that it repels everything, even transformation magic to adjust to the world's setting. She didn't want to lie to Roxas about her having one, but it was for the safety of everyone. "I mean, I'm not wearing one. So, it must be your coat." She added.

Roxas nodded his head. "I guess so…" he took off the coat and turned to face the white-haired merman. "One more time?" he gave the king a sheepish look.

Triton raised his trident once more. His trident began to glow and a ray of light was shot from the tip of the trident. The Nobody was covered in a bright light for a few seconds. It felt weird for him to be transformed into something like a fish. He opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a black-colored tail.

"Woah!" Roxas exclaimed in surprise, staring at his own tail. He was so surprised that he fell backwards into the water. He could feel himself being pulled up to a sitting position. "It works?" he asked.

Hikari laughed. "Well, you have a tail now." She pointed out.

"You're taking this so easily." Roxas struggled to keep his balance.

"It's one of my dreams to breathe underwater! This is my chance!" Hikari said cheerfully.

Triton cleared his throat, making the two turn their attention back to the king. "I shall be taking my leave for now. I have left my kingdom unattended for too long." He announced. "Sebastian, I'm certain that you can handle things from here?"

"Certainly, Your Majesty!" the crab, Sebastian, saluted.

"When you have grasp the ability to swim with your new tail, I shall debrief of what you have to do." Triton spoke to the two wielders, who nodded their head in understanding.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Hikari bowed her head.

The king turned to face the ocean and he dived back into the water, disappearing from their sight.

A loud sigh of relieved was heard. "You children are lucky that King Triton seemed to have taken a liking to you!" Sebastian said and he jumped into the water, swimming closer to Hikari and Roxas. "He is not very accepting to the human kinds. So be grateful that he has blessed the two of you with his powers!"

Roxas smiled. "Leave it to you to butter everyone up with your words." He whispered to the girl and sniggered when Hikari squirt water at his face.

"Shut it," Hikari said.

Sebastian cleared his throat. "As you know, my name is Sebastian! I'll be teaching the two of you how to swim."

Hikari raised an eyebrow. Despite Sebastian being a crab, he was going to be the one teaching them how to swim like a mermaid and merman. She can't really judge. Merlin wasn't a keyblade wielder, but he was great at teaching her how to use it. So maybe having a crab for a swimming teach wasn't bad at all. She followed the crab out to the sea and watching him dive in.

"Coming, Rox?" Hikari turned around to face her friend, who was still at the shore. She swam back closer to him, giving him a smile. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Roxas sighed. "I don't know… it feels like I want to go, but don't too…"

The brunette hummed. "I guess you can call that 'worry'. You're worried, I guess." She doesn't know how to describe emotions to the Nobody, but she tried as best as she can to explain them to him.

"So, this is what worry feels like…" Roxas murmured, placing his gloved hand on his chest.

Hikari smiled. "If you're really that worried, think about it this way… You're a merman now, at least you can't possibly drown—!" she stopped when water was splashed at her face. She spits the salt water out from her mouth and gave a strained smile. "It's true though. You can _breathe_ underwater." she emphasized.

Roxas rolled his eyes, tying the coat around his waist.

"Let's go."

"Don't be _salty_ , Roxas."

"Hikari."

"Be _shore_ of your abilities!"

Roxas groaned, running his hand down his face. "I don't _sea_ why you like doing this on _porpoise_."

Hikari burst out laughing.

* * *

A/N: We finally have Hikari visiting Atlantis! And with Roxas! From what I gathered, by wearing the Organization's cloak, the person is not turned to adjust to the world's setting. Like when Roxas visited Halloween Town, his clothes didn't turn to a Halloween one.

Questions time!

What do you guys think of this chapter?

I have posted on DA and tumblr about Hikari's keyblade, and I don't know what to name her keyblade… I like Guardian, but it's a bit short… any suggestions?

For Little Adventures, what do you guys think so far of the art and story and character portrayal? Are they in character? Is the story good? Is the art good?

Thank you so much! See you next chapter! 😃


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Another chapter 😃 special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed this story!

Guest1: thank you!

Guest 2: those are great ideas! Thanks for sharing! I have a few ideas in mind because of the ideas you shared!

Guest 3: let's find out in this chapter!

Guest 4: haha probably

c-guest: Lol me too! Thank you! And that's a cool name!

Tziphora: Merman Roxas! Haha, I actually drew a picture of Merman Roxas for this chapter lol.

Guest 5: lol none taken! I also agree haha

Guest 6: it is! Especially with the LA: Final Chapter lol

TheIrishWriter: the puns! So bad! Lol! Maybe Xion inherited that ability instead haha. Hhmmm perhaps…

Swan girl: thanks!

Draconicflare: thank you! Lol and Hikari's having too much fun with messing them. And thanks for the suggestions!

Gry21: thank you! Hmmm I used to write TF X KH crossovers but yeah haha… thanks for the names suggestion!

Lulu9814: thank you so much! The design's up at my DA!

SuperSonicBros123: ups! Thanks for pointing it out!

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 15  
Visit

* * *

"C'mon, Rox! You can do it!"

Roxas snorted in reply. "It's harder than it looks…" he said as he struggled to swim towards Hikari and Sebastian. He gave up halfway and sighed out deeply, letting a few bubbles out from his mouth. He pounded on his lower back with his fist gently. With all of the practice he has been doing, it was beginning to make his back ache. He managed to learn how to use his new tail, but he didn't know how he could swim quickly with it.

His blue eyes went back to Hikari as she swam closer to him, an encouraging smile on her lips. "C'mon, Rox! It's easy once you know how to kick with your tail." The brunette grinned, taking Roxas' hands to make him swim again.

The blond let out a short laugh. "Easy for you to say." He said as he tried moving his tail faster, but he ended up tired with all of the extra energy he put to swim faster. "I get tired easily using this…"

"Maybe it's because you're still trying to swim like a human rather than a merman." Hikari stated, watching the way how Roxas tried to swim.

A smile was seen on Roxas' face when Hikari mentioned 'human' instead of 'Nobody'. Since they became friends, never once she mentioned that he's a Nobody. She always tried to avoid talking about it and it made him relieved that she saw him just like everyone else and not some freak with no heart.

"Hey, Roxas, how about you stop trying to use your big behind and try using your back instead?" The brunette laughed loudly, releasing Roxas' hands from hers.

Roxas face palmed. "My behind's not big!" He huffed out, a pout on his lips. "You know what? You're like the worst teacher ever." he added, crossing his arms over his chest.

"H—Hey! You're not so great at teaching either!" Hikari quickly defended, glaring at the boy. She pointed her finger accusingly at the boy. "You haven't exactly taught me, but you're probably no better than me either!" she crossed her arms, giving him the stink eye.

"Ouch!" Roxas laughed. "But still, you admit that you're a bad teacher."

"Why you—!"

"Children! Children!" Sebastian swam towards the two and crossed his pinchers, giving them both a stern look. Roxas and Hikari exchanged looks before shrugging, turning their attention back to the crab. "Let's focus on getting to Atlantica other than bickering nonsense!" he chided.

"We're getting there, right, Roxas?" Hikari turned to face her friend, grinning.

The blond gave her an unsure smile and she gave him a reassuring pat to his shoulder. For some reason, it was harder for Roxas to learn how to swim with a tail. He was glad that Hikari understood his situation. He had no memories of his past and therefore he can't swim well. Hikari could've just left him to learn by himself, but she didn't. She stood by his side and tried her best to teach him, even with her poor teaching skill.

"And besides, we just got turned into a merman and a mermaid, I'm sure King Triton won't mind another fifteen minutes." The brunette added, placing a hand on her hip.

Sebastian sighed. "Very well, but we shall not keep His Highness waiting longer than that." He said, turning around to swim towards where Atlantica is. Though he might not say it, he slowed down his pace for the two teens to keep up.

The Nobody heaved out a heavy sigh, making the girl turn to face him. "Sorry for slowing you guys down…" he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck.

Hikari slapped Roxas's back, earning a loud yelp of pain from him. "Stop being so gloomy and stop blaming yourself! It's not healthy for you!" the girl scolded, a frown across her face. It kind of annoys her that Roxas kept blaming himself for every problem that happened around them. It wasn't his fault at all, but he kept apologizing. She swam in a circle before swimming beside the blond. "You know that I don't mind at all. We get to spend time together! This is just like your missions. The only difference is that you're doing it with me." She pointed out.

Roxas gave a short laugh as he rubbed his back. "Thanks."

"Children, behold!" Sebastian's voice made the two teens turn their attention to him. They both exchanged looks and Hikari grabbed Roxas' hand, swimming faster towards where the crab is floating. Their eyes widened in awe when they saw the kingdom in front of them. The kingdom seemed to glow in the depths of the ocean. From a distance, it seemed that the whole kingdom was made out of beautifully crafted corals and rocks. "Welcome, to the kingdom of Atlantica!" he proudly exclaimed.

"Woah…" Roxas and Hikari stared in awe.

Sebastian closed his eyes, nodding his head as the two teens kept on staring. A look of pride was seen across his face. "Yes, yes, I know, it's beautiful—!"

"Oh man! We have to take a picture!" Hikari pulled out her camera and stretched her arm as far as she can with the lens facing them. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Roxas a few feet behind her, giving a peace sign while Sebastian was staring at them weirdly. The brunette turned back to face the camera, giving a peace sign as well. "Say cheese~!" she said before clicking on the shutter.

"Can I see?" Roxas said excitedly, peeking over Hikari's shoulder to see the result. Ever since Hikari started sharing the pictures she took with him, he's been eager to receive another one. Of course, he never showed the pictures to anyone, not even to Axel and Xion. He stuffed all of the pictures inside an envelope before hiding it beneath the mattress. They were precious to him since they were like memories. "Hmm… Sebastian looks a little confused." He hummed, staring at the red crab's expression on the screen.

"His expression makes the picture look more natural." Hikari sniggered. She felt relieved that she bought the waterproof camera instead. "I'll give you the picture when we get back, apparently it can't print out any pictures when in water." She stated, putting the camera away.

"No problem!" Roxas nodded his head.

The crab appeared in front of Hikari's face. "You mustn't use it near anyone, especially anywhere near His Majesty!" he warned, swimming back and forth with a worried look. "Who knows what will happen if you use it in front of the King!" his teeth began to chatter, thinking all of the possibilities.

"Okay, okay, fine, I won't use it. Just cool yourself, Sebastian." Hikari moved her hand, motioning for Sebastian to calm down.

"Exactly what will King Triton do if Hikari use the camera in front of him?" Roxas asked worriedly.

Sebastian turned to face the blond. "Oh, I'll tell you what will happen! He might destroy that human object! Or worse, turn your friend into a rock!" he shrieked in panic, holding his tiny head in his pincers.

"W—What?!" Roxas turned to Hikari with a horrified look.

"Whoa…" The brunette whistled, "Well… I guess I can fit being a rock in one of my wish-list?" she joked, shrugging her shoulders.

Roxas gave a deadpan look.

Sebastian sighed deeply before turning around to face the kingdom. "We best be on our way, or else all of us might get turned to rocks!" he quickly swam away, leaving the two teens behind.

Hikari turned to Roxas, "I guess we better follow him." she followed Sebastian's lead.

The blond quickly followed his friend. "You're not scared? He is the King after all…" he said, swimming next to Hikari.

"He needed us to take care of the Heartless problem, so I doubt he would actually turn us into rocks." Hikari reasoned, giving a thumbs up.

Roxas stared at his friend in awe. Despite sometimes being slow and careless, Hikari is actually smarter than she looks. She could come up with brilliant ideas without noticing and sometimes gave valid reasons that no one could object. Though sometimes, she could give the stupidest advice ever that would make anyone ticked and hit her upside the head for being stupid. It amazed him that such a person exists.

"You've… never been to a beach before, right, Roxas?" Hikari's voice broke his trail of thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Roxas responded.

The brunette looked over her shoulder. "What better way to experience your first day at the beach and the sea by going to this world?" She grinned, pointing her finger at the kingdom's entrance.

The Nobody glanced around. The scene around them changed. It wasn't just rocks and sand. He could see other Merfolk swimming around from one place to another. Colorful fishes swam around him. He had never seen anything so colorful in one place before. He had been to many worlds, but he had never seen something so alive and beautiful.

"Wow…" Roxas breathed, his eyes looking around the view.

"How about another picture?" Hikari grinned, pulling out her camera from her pouch.

Roxas snapped his gaze back to her. "No!" he swam towards her, his hand reaching out to take the camera away.

The brunette burst out laughing, dodging Roxas' hand. "Geez Roxas! I never knew you were such a mother-hen! Just cool your jets, okay?" she turned to around, ignoring Roxas' comments about her to stop being so careless and carefree. "You're such a mom sometimes." She commented.

"I'm not your mom!" Roxas frowned at the brunette. There were a few minutes of silence before he swam to Hikari's side. He covered his mouth and Hikari's ear. "What if you really get turned into a rock?" he whispered.

" _Relax_ , will you?"

Suddenly, a blur of red came towards them, appearing right in front of the two teens. "Is that thing from the human world?!" the voice asked—a female to be precise.

The Nobody's shoulders stiffened. "N—No! Of course not! That's not from the human world!" Roxas blurted out, panicked.

Hikari blinked. "Yeah?" It was a mermaid with long red-hair and bright cheerful aqua blue eyes.

The mermaid let out a squeal. "What does it do? How did you get it? May I see it?" she questioned the young girl, staring at the object in her hands.

"Ariel! That thing could be dangerous!" a yellow fish said, appearing behind Sebastian.

Roxas gave the brunette a look, elbowing the girl's side.

Hikari held in the pain, gritting her teeth to prevent a scream coming out. She rubbed her side and elbowed back, giving a glare.

The mermaid named Ariel turned around to smile at the fish. "Oh, come on, Flounder! This is something from the outside world in the hands of another mermaid! I'm pretty sure it's safe." She replied before turning to Hikari again.

The brunette stopped her glaring contest with Roxas and grinned at the mermaid's enthusiasm. "This is—," Hikari paused when she saw the look across Sebastian's face. She peered over the mermaid's shoulder and saw Sebastian waving his pincers around. The crab kept on shaking his head and mouthing 'no' all the time. Roxas was beside Sebastian and the blond pointed his finger at the crab, giving a look at Hikari. After a few seconds of processing what Sebastian was trying to say, she nodded her head in understanding before turning her attention to the mermaid in front of her. "You see, the humans called this a camera!" she held the black camera out.

"Oh! A camera! What does it do?" The red-haired mermaid—Ariel—asked curiously, leaning down to see the camera more closely.

"It's a pretty rare thing! One of the humans dropped this when they were sailing!" Hikari lied, turning the camera on and moving it away from her, the lens facing them. "I saw them use this while smiling and then you click this button and then—," she clicked on the shutter, taking a picture of Ariel and herself. "A picture comes up to this clear thing and tada!" she handed the camera to Ariel's hands.

"That's really amazing!" Ariel's eyes gleamed in amazement when she saw the result on the display screen.

"Great, great, now give that thing back!" Sebastian swam closer to the two, urging Ariel to give the camera back to the owner. Ariel pouted and gave the camera back to Hikari. The brunette gave a friendly pat and a smile to the pouting redhead. "You know how your father feels when you bring out the topic of the human world." He said in a whisper, covering his mouth with his pincer.

Ariel let out a sigh.

"Father?" Roxas echoed.

Sebastian nodded. "You're speaking to the youngest daughter of His Majesty, Princess Ariel." He introduced, moving his pincer to Ariel.

"O—oh, sorry— Princess—," Roxas tried to apologize. He followed the way Hikari addressed a royalty. It didn't feel like him at all for some reason.

"Just call me Ariel and this is my friend, Flounder." Ariel added, directing her hand to the yellow fish beside her.

Flounder waved his fin shyly. "H—Hello…"

"I'm Roxas and this is Hikari." the blond said.

"Nice to meet you two!" Ariel chirped before swimming closer to the two. "Can you please tell me everything you know about the human world?" she clasps her hands on Hikari's hand, holding them in a firm grasp. The mermaid was beaming with excitement. Everyone could tell.

Sebastian cleared his throat. "Ehem! I'm sorry Ariel, but we have already wasted enough time. Your father has been expecting them and they can't afford to be late!" he said.

"Oh…" Ariel sighed.

Hikari placed a hand on the redhead's shoulder. "Hey, there's always time after we finished His Majesty's tasks. We can talk later, okay?" She said, trying to cheer her up.

"Really?" Ariel's mood instantly brightened.

The brunette gave a nod.

Ariel swam towards Flounder, taking his fins to spin him around. "Did you hear that Flounder?! We're going to hear a story!" she giggled.

"That's great, Ariel! But could you please stop spinning me?" Flounder said, his face turning green from motion sickness.

Roxas stared at Hikari with a disbelief look. It was almost as if Hikari's personality was twisted around three hundred and sixty degrees. Before going to this world, she wasn't all polite and calm. Ever since, she met the king of Atlantica, she had been acting weird. She's still supportive and friendly, but it bothered him a little. He swam towards his friend, a frown on his face.

"You're… acting strange…" Roxas said quietly.

The brunette turned to face him. "What?"

The blond nodded. "Yeah, you've been acting all polite and stuff and… and it isn't like you at all." He explained, making hand gestures.

"Uh…. Is it really wrong to be like that?" Hikari gave a sheepish laugh, rubbing the back of her neck.

Roxas shrugged. "No… but it's kinda creeping me out. I guess I'm just not used to you being like this… the Hikari I met was… different." He said truthfully.

The girl stared at him before turning her head to look at how happy Ariel is. "…I guess… I just feel guilty to this world…" she finally admitted.

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "Guilty? Why? You've been here before?"

The girl gave a sigh. It wasn't that she did something bad to the world or anyone in it. Back when she was still with Maleficent, she knew Ursula even though she only seen the witch a few times in her time at the castle. She didn't help Ursula spread the Heartless, but she didn't try to stop her either. It was just that she knew the evil plans of what Ursula will do to this world and she did nothing to help and stop the evil sea hag.

"No… Not really…" Hikari rubbed the back of her neck. "It's just that well… I guess you could say that I didn't help out when they needed me the most. I wasn't there—," she could feel her cheeks being pulled to maximum length. "OUCH! Hey!" she shouted, swimming away from her attacker.

Roxas crossed his arms, giving the brunette a teasing look. "Who was the one who said that I need to stop blaming myself, hmm?" he hummed, leaning his head forward. The girl in front of him blinked her eyes a few times, trying to process his words. The Nobody suddenly smiled and swam closer to his friend. "I'm sure that you've tried your best, so don't worry. It's not your fault." He said.

"Thanks, Rox… for reminding me." Hikari gave a short laugh, her hands on her cheeks.

The Nobody grinned. "Anytime!"

"I guess… He was right." Hikari glanced up, staring at the surface. Axel's words came to mind. It wasn't a compliment, but his words made her realize her mistake. Even though she realized her flaw, sometimes, she still need someone to help remind her.

Roxas tilted his head, glancing from the surface back to Hikari. "Who?"

Hikari grinned, swimming away from him to Ariel. "Not telling~!" she said in a sing-song voice.

"H—Hey! C'mon! I thought there's no secret between us!" Roxas complained.

Hikari laughed.

She swam pass Ariel and Flounder. "Hey! Race you guys to the palace! Last one there is a rotten egg!" she turned around, flashing them a grin as she kept on swimming towards the direction of the palace.

Not a second later, Roxas swam pass Ariel and Flounder too. "Cheater! You got a head start!" he shouted, kicking with his tail to swim faster.

Ariel, Flounder and Sebastian glanced at each other.

The redhaired gave a shrug before following the two teens.

"W—Wait for me!" Flounder shouted.

Sebastian let out a sigh, "Children…"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Tag! You're it!"

"Oh c'mon, Ariel! Flounder! You're it!"

"M—Me?! You're it!"

"No fair! You guys always aim for me!"

Hikari dodged Roxas' hand as he tried to tag her. Whenever Roxas got tagged by either her, Ariel or Flounder, she would always make it hard for him to tag anyone back. Every single time he was close enough to tag anyone, they would swim away in the nick of time, forcing him to swim faster to catch them. He might not realize it, but Hikari was actually training him to swim faster with his tail.

"C'mon, Hikari! Stop swimming so fast!" Roxas frowned as he tried to tag his friend. He hated the fact that everyone always aimed for him since he was the easiest target.

The brunette laughed. "Nice try, Roxas! But you ain't gonna catch me if you keep on swimming so slow!" she taunted as she kicked with her tail, leaving Roxas behind. She looked forward and saw both Ariel and Flounder had made it to the palace's gates. "C'mon, Rox! At this rate, you're going to be the rotten egg—!" suddenly, she felt something tapped her head.

"Who's the rotten egg now?" Roxas smirked, swimming above Hikari. "See you at the finish line!" he dashed forward towards the palace gates in speed.

Hikari stopped swimming and stared at Roxas with a flabbergasted look. She didn't expect Roxas to catch up with her that fast, sure at some point, she expected him to tag her back before the finish line, but she never expected him to tag her a second later after she teased him. She placed a hand on her head as a smile appeared on her lips.

Sebastian appeared beside her. "Well, that's one way to teach him how to swim." He said. His eyes watched as Roxas reached the palace's gates, exchanging a few words with Ariel and Flounder before turning to face them back with a grin across his face. The two stayed where they are as both Roxas and Ariel waved their hand, urging them to continue. A smile appeared on Sebastian's usually tired face. "You did a good job, if I say so myself." He praised, his pincers crossed.

The brunette turned to face the red crab. "Games are more fun than the regular tutorial." She said. It was a lot easier for her to learn something new if it was done in something that she liked, like games for example. She figured Roxas was like her when it comes to learning. "Well! Let's go Sebastian!" she straightened her posture, her hand on her hips.

"Yes—,"

"By the way… TAG! You're it!" Hikari shouted, poking Sebastian's shell before bolting straight towards the palace's gates.

Sebastian kept on shaking his head as he swam towards the three teens.

"What took you so long?" by the time Hikari reached the gate, she was already greeted with Roxas' concerned look. She was only a few minutes behind him, but he was already worrying over the younger one.

Hikari shook her head. "Nothing, nothing, just decided to tag Sebastian before heading towards the finish line!" she grinned, giving a proud look.

Roxas laughed. "That's not fair, you tagged someone who isn't playing tag." He reminded.

"Sebastian's playing with us, he's just too stubborn to admit that he's playing." Hikari defended and Roxas raised his hands up in defeat. The brunette glanced around, trying to find her new friends. When she didn't see the mermaid and the yellow fish, she turned to face the blond. "Where did Ariel and Flounder go? They were here a minute ago, right?" she asked, glancing around once more.

"They went in first, something about putting away a bag." Roxas quoted.

The brunette nodded her head in reply.

Sebastian arrived, clapping his pincers to gain the teens' attention. "Now, children! We best be on our way to see His Majesty!" he ushered the two to enter the palace.

Both Roxas and Hikari nodded, following Sebastian's lead. The palace was huge. It was made entirely out of corals and rocks. It was beautiful, but it was empty. Silent. There wasn't a single sound except from them. It made them both uncomfortable for some reason. Though Roxas was used to the silence in the Castle That Never Was, it still felt weird to hear nothing but himself. Hikari on the other hand was feeling a lot more uncomfortable than Roxas. She didn't like the silence at all. She rather be in a buzzling market than be in a beautiful yet silent palace.

Hikari cleared her throat, breaking the silence. "Ummm… is it always this silent?" she said, her voice echoing slightly in the spacious area.

"Yes, most of the time." Sebastian replied.

"What? No music, no chatting, no nothing? It's so quiet than I can hear my own thoughts which is rare..." Hikari continued.

Sebastian nodded his head. "Sometimes, there are musical performances, but that is rare indeed." He answered and turned around, swimming on his back. "For I am the Advisor and Royal Court Composer, you see." He said proudly with a pincer placed on his chest.

"Wow, two jobs in one." Roxas said in amazement.

"We want to hear you sing!" Hikari grinned.

Sebastian smiled. "Then you should wait till the next performance—!"

The three of them turned their head to the throne room when they heard a scream. It surprised them all to hear it so suddenly. It was silent before, but when they heard the scream, it almost made them jump. Both Roxas and Hikari exchanged looks before nodding. Roxas grabbed Sebastian gently and quickly swam towards the direction where they heard the scream.

It wasn't long until they reached the chamber. From the halls, they could already hear the noises coming from the chamber. They knew that it was hectic, but they never expected it to be _that_ hectic. Inside the spacious throne chamber, a group of jellyfish-looking Heartless were swimming around, terrorizing the mermaids inside the room. A few fish-like Heartless were also found chasing the mermaids. One of those mermaids was Ariel and of course Flounder was by her side.

"This is terrible!" Sebastian swam out of Roxas' hands and his pincers went up to his head, staring at the scene with a horrific look.

Hikari's blue eyes scanned through the mob of Heartless.

"Ariel! Flounder!" Hikari shouted in worry when she saw the two were trying to out-swim a Heartless. She quickly summoned her rod, pointing it at the direction of the Heartless. "Stop chasing my friends! Eat this, Fire!" she shouted and nothing came out of the rod. She stared at the rod confusedly. "What? No way… Did I run out of magic already?" she questioned herself.

Roxas almost facepalmed. "Fire don't work in water!" he reminded. "Watch out!" his eyes widening at the sight of another Heartless coming closer.

"Sorry! I forgot! I panicked, okay?!"

Hikari quickly kicked with her tail, swimming towards the Heartless with her rod drawn back. With all her might, she swung the rod at the Heartless, hitting it away like a baseball. "Freeze!" she shouted, and a ray of blue light was shot out of the rod, freezing the Heartless in a block of ice. "Take this!" she smacked the ice along with the Heartless, killing it off in one swing.

Hikari stared at her rod. "Now we know ice based magic works in water. Can't say the same about fire and wind or even thunder though…" she turned to face her friend.

Roxas nodded in agreement. "Best we only use blizzard for magic then…" he raised his hand and summoned his keyblade. "Let's do this!" his grip on the handle tightened as he turned to face the Heartless.

The brunette swam beside Roxas, her rod in her hand. When Roxas summoned his keyblade, all of the Heartless' attention seemed to focus on him. The Heartless quickly ignored all of the mermaids and gathered up at the center to face the two teens.

Hikari kicked a Heartless away with her tail before zapping them with Blizzard. It was a lot harder to fight underwater, but having a tail made up for it. It replaced her legs and her kicks were more powerful than before. Knowing the fact that her magic is basically useless against the Heartless when underwater, she used her tail to advantage. Though her rod could kill off the Heartless in a few swings, it was faster to take out the Heartless using her tail and the rod combined.

Roxas on the other hand, was having it easier than Hikari. With one hit from the keyblade, he was able to take down the Heartless strike after strike. He never relied on magic to begin with, it was easier for him to just use the keyblade.

"Ouch! Hey—That's mine!" Hikari retreated her hand back when the jellyfish Heartless, the Sea Neon, came out of nowhere and snatched her rod away with its blueish-green tentacles, along the way, stinging her hand. She quickly cast cure over the wound, glaring at the Heartless that took her weapon away.

"Hikari!" Roxas quickly swam over to her, staring at her hand in worry. "You okay? I have some potions—!" his eyes widened when light began to surround Hikari's hand.

It was a familiar light.

The keyblade.

"Hah! Bet you think that I don't have any other weapon, now, HUH?!" Hikari gave a smug look at the Heartless that took away her rod. She quickly swam towards the Heartless and swam pass by it, avoiding the tentacles. She swung the keyblade at the Heartless' head, killing it off in an instant. She reached her hand out and grabbed her rod back. "Heh! That'll teach 'em to never mess with me!" she smirked.

Roxas kept his eyes on the keyblade in Hikari's grasp.

This was the first time he saw Hikari's keyblade.

He knew that Hikari can wield the keyblade, but he didn't know that she could summon one.

It was different from his.

"A… keyblade…" Roxas mumbled.

Hikari blinked, turning her attention back to Roxas. "Oh yeah, I guess this is your first time seeing my keyblade, huh?" she summoned away her rod and raised the keyblade up a little to let Roxas look at it. A smile appeared when she saw how Roxas looked at her keyblade in awe. "It isn't exactly mine… it was passed down to me by my master." She explained, lowering the keyblade down.

"Your… master? You never told me about that…" Roxas said, gazing to look Hikari at her eyes.

The brunette summoned away the keyblade. "Well… I wanted to tell you, but we were talking about a lot of things that wasn't about keyblades and stuff, since it was a deep topic… and it kinda slips my mind… sorry…" she apologized, rubbing the back of her neck with a sheepish look.

"I… never knew there were other keyblade wielders or masters besides us…" Roxas whispered.

Hikari stared at Roxas before averting her gaze. She knew from when she was little, but didn't understand until she was older. The keyblades she saw in that land proves it. The talk about keyblades was a heavy topic for her to talk with Roxas. She didn't know herself, let alone explaining it to Roxas. So the topic was never brought up between them.

"Save me!" Suddenly a dark-brown-haired mermaid swam towards Roxas and hid behind him.

"W—What?" Roxas turned his gaze over his shoulder, completely surprised by the action.

"Adella!" Ariel called out to the mermaid, swimming towards them.

Hikari turned her attention to Roxas and the mermaid behind him for a second before turning back to look at the Heartless chasing the mermaid. She quickly summoned her keyblade and moved to stand in the Heartless' way. She swung her keyblade and took out the last Heartless in the chamber.

The brunette summoned away the keyblade as she watched the heart float up to the surface. She turned around to look at the mermaid behind Roxas. "You okay, Your Highness?" she asked.

Adella clung onto Roxas' arm. "Oh, thank you for saving me! You're too kind!"

Ariel appeared beside Hikari and the two girls exchanged looks.

"Uh—but it wasn't me—"

"Oh c'mon, Roxas! You don't have to be shy!" Hikari teased, crossing her arms over her chest with a grin on her face. "You're always so shy when it comes to accepting a compliment!" she fought the urge to laugh at him.

Roxas flashed Hikari a look and mouthed, 'Not funny.'

The brunette only grinned. At least it changed the topic and mood between them.

"What is going on here?" A deep and commanding voice echoed in the chamber, surprising everyone. They all turned around and saw the King swimming towards them with a few guards behind him. He held the trident in his large hands, his dark eyes glancing around to speculate the scene. When no one spoke, his eyes landed on his Advisor. "Sebastian, care to explain to me what happened during my absence?" he asked.

Sebastian swam closer to the King. "Your Majesty—,"

"It was the monsters, father." a brunette spoke, holding another mermaid's hand in worry.

Triton's eyes widened. "Monsters?! In my palace!?" his voice boomed inside the silent room.

"But don't worry, father! This merman saved us all!" the one named Adella said, holding Roxas' hand.

Roxas cleared his throat when Triton's eyes move to stare at him. "But it wasn't just me, sir—,"

Hikari placed a hand on Roxas' shoulder, shaking her head. "Has this been happening often, Your Majesty?" she asked as she turned her head to face the King.

A sigh escaped his lips as he swam towards his throne. "Unfortunately, yes… but those monsters have never attacked the palace before. It is getting worse as each day passes." He explained, putting his trident on the pedestal beside his throne before taking a seat. "Which is why I am giving this mission to the both of you. Find a way to make these monsters stop from invading my kingdom." He ordered.

"That, I know." Triton replied and Hikari blinked before nodding her head. She wondered how Triton knew everything about the outside world, the keyblades and the Heartless. It was clear that he didn't want his daughters to find out about the Heartless. "I want you to at least keep them at bay and away from my kingdom."

"Will do." Hikari nodded her head again.

"Alright…" Roxas also nodded his head.

Triton turned his attention to his daughters. "Until the monsters are taken care of, no one shall leave the palace. Do I make myself clear, girls?" his eyes glazed over to Ariel specifically.

"But, daddy—!"

Triton rose up from his throne, giving Ariel a stern look. "Ariel, we have talked about this many times—" his eyes then spotted the brown satchel Ariel has with her. He slammed his fist to the armrest of the throne, surprising everyone including Roxas and Hikari. They both knew that Triton was a scary looking merman when they first met him, but they didn't expect him to raise his voice on his own daughter. "Did you go outside of the border to see the human world, Ariel?!" he bellowed.

"But what's wrong with it?!" Ariel swam up to her father's eyelevel. "I've been there many times and nothing happened!" she argued.

"That's enough!"

Ariel quieted down.

"I set certain rules and I expect those rules to be obeyed." Triton straightened his posture, staring at Ariel.

The redhead glared at her own father before turning around, swimming out of the chamber.

"A—Ariel!" her friend, Flounder quickly swim after her.

Hikari turned to Roxas and he nodded his head. "Please excuse me, Your Majesty." She bowed her head to the King before following after her two friends.

As soon as Hikari was out of view, Triton let out a heavy sigh. "You don't think that I was too rough on her, now do you?" he asked as he leaned against the armrest. "I just want what is best for her…" he sat back on his throne, massaging his temples.

"Don't worry, father… it's not your fault…" one of his daughters swam up to him, giving a small smile. "Just give Ariel some time… she'll understand what you're doing is the best for her someday."

Roxas stared at the King before looking at the direction where Hikari left earlier. He never knew what a father's worry feels like, but knew how deeply the king cared for his daughters. It was just like how he felt worried every time his friends got hurt. The one time he felt someone was worried over a Nobody like him was the time when Hikari stopped him from going over the check point at the restoration site.

At that time, Hikari never met him. She only knew his name, but she was worried about him.

"Your Majesty!" A soldier swam towards them in a rush. "The fish monster is spotted around the border!"

Triton rose up from his chair, his expression turned to worry. "Ariel!"

It wasn't just Triton who was worried about Ariel.

Roxas was worried about Hikari too.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Ariel! Wait!"

The redhead stopped.

Finally, both Hikari and Flounder caught up with the young mermaid.

Ariel's hands were balled up into fists on each side, her shoulders shaking in anger. Both Flounder and Hikari exchanged looks. It hasn't been a day since Hikari met her, but she was worried about the redhead. Her father—is probably too strict on her and it was beginning to bother her. The brunette was just worried that their relationship would be broken because of what the young mermaid likes to do.

"Ariel… Let's go back—your dad will be really worried about you—," Flounder glanced around, paranoid that something will come out from the never-ending blue.

"What does he care? I can't even do something that I liked!" Ariel huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, her back facing them.

"But he's just doing what's best for you…" Flounder added, swimming closer to his friend. He looked back to Hikari to give her a pleading look, almost as if he was saying for her to help ease the situation. When the girl gave a look, the fish slapped his fin on the girl's forearm. "Hikari!" he hissed quietly.

Hikari pursed her lips. "Well… umm…" she tried to come up with a solution. She opened her mouth a couple of times, but shut them close when the options and advice she was about to give didn't fit the situation. She paced around, swimming back and forth as she tried to give the right advice to her friend. "Well, I got nothing…" she sighed, slumping her shoulders.

"It's just not fair! Why is daddy always being so protective about? There is nothing wrong with trying to find out more about the human world!" Ariel burst out, turning around to face Flounder and Hikari. She clutched the single strap of the brown satchel as her brows knitted together.

Hikari crossed her arms, nodding her head. "I agree, there's nothing wrong with that." She gave a hum, agreeing with what Ariel had said. She turned her head to face Flounder and the fish gave her a glare as he crossed his fins. "Buuuut…. On the other hand, your dad just wants you to be safe… so I guess he's right?" she drawled out, correcting her choice.

On one side, someone should be able to express themselves through what they like, but on the other… a father just wants what's best for his daughter.

Hikari can't really pick a side since both sides are right in her view.

Ariel turned to face the young girl. "Are you on his side too then?" she frowned, her arms crossed.

The brunette panicked. "No! Uh—I mean, yes! No! Yes? Uh…" she fumbled, trying to find the correct words to explain. Her hands went up to her head and tilted her chin up to look at the surface. "Argh! Why is it that everything I do and say is wrong?!" she shouted out in frustration.

Ariel sighed before swimming closer. "I'm sorry, Hikari… I didn't mean it like that." She said, her shoulders slumped and her eyes stared at the sand below them.

The brunette gave a smile, shaking her head. "Don't worry about it, Ariel."

Flounder tilted his head when it suddenly became dark. He turned around and a large gasp escaped his lips.

"M—MONSTER!" Flounder hid behind Ariel, shaking in fear.

"Flounder!"

Hikari's eyes widened when she saw how large in size the fish—or more likely the Heartless is. It wasn't like a normal fish-based Heartless. She could hear the sound of turning gears from it. She glanced down and saw how the tail seemed to work like a propeller instead of a normal fish tail. The fish Heartless' teeth were clear like glass, showing a few fish-based Heartless inside the submarine. It was almost like the Gummi Heartless, similar to the Heartless she encountered in the Lanes in Between when she was still using the Gummi Ship to travel.

"I—Isn't that the monster?" Ariel pointed her finger at the Heartless.

"Talk later! Swim!" Hikari shouted, grabbing Ariel's wrist.

Ariel quickly grabbed onto the fin of the yellow fish as Hikari pulled them a little higher to avoid the Heartless' sudden attack. She turned her gaze over her shoulder and saw the Heartless began to turn around. Not a second later, the Heartless swam towards them in full speed. The brunette swam back down with Ariel's hand still in hers. The Heartless missed the three and ended up going to the surface. A second later, the Heartless dived back into the sea.

Flounder began to quiver as he peeked his head out from Ariel's shoulder. "W—What are we gonna do now? That monster's gonna get us!" he shouted.

"We can't lead it back to the kingdom!" Ariel said.

Hikari raised her hand and summoned her rod. "We just have to take care of it here then!"

"Are you kidding? That thing's like twenty bazillion times bigger than us!" Flounder blocked Hikari's view, swimming close to her face.

Hikari moved her head and her eyes widened when the Heartless' tail launched itself from the body. Luckily it missed the three and hits the coral beside them. The brunette quickly casted a shield around themselves to protect them from the broken pieces of corals and the clouds of sand around them. The water cleared around them and they were quickly met with the Heartless' glass teeth.

The brunette stare inside the Heartless through the teeth made from glass. She was frozen when she saw how close the Heartless was to them. Flounder's scream broke her away from her state. She dropped her rod and quickly grabbed both Ariel's hand and Flounder's fin to escape. She swam under the Heartless as it lunged at the spot where they stood before.

"You two find somewhere to hide while I take care of this!" Hikari shouted, releasing their hand to summon the keyblade.

Flounder pulled on Ariel's hand. "C'mon Ariel, let's go."

Ariel nodded. "Wait! My satchel!" she shouted when she realized her satchel was no longer with her. Her eyes scanned the area frantically as she spotted the satchel a few meters away from the fish. She dived down in speed, trying to get to her satchel before the monster does.

Hikari eyes widened when a blur of red passed by her. "Ariel, wait!" she followed after the mermaid, the keyblade in her grasp.

Ariel grabbed her satchel and quickly turned around to swim back to Flounder. Her eyes widened when she saw the look across Flounder's face. The redhead glanced over her shoulder and a gasp escaped her lips when the Blue Trident Tail was heading towards her.

The brunette made it in time to create a barrier with the keyblade, just when the Blue Trident Tail rammed itself into the spear. The force knocked the spear away, along with the two mermaids in it.

"Ariel! Hikari!" Flounder quickly followed the spear.

Hikari dispelled the barrier around them and they continued spinning in the water for a few more spins before stopping completely. The two mermaids floated down to the sand beneath them, holding their head in dizziness. The brunette crouched down, her forehead almost touched the sand as she tried to make her head stop spinning. She sat up straight, her vision double as she gazed forward. She blinked a few times, trying to focus on the sight in front of her.

Her right hand reached out to grab the keyblade. A jolt of pain shot up her right hand when she tried to take the keyblade off from the sand. She grimaced in pain as she slowly raised her hand. Her blue eyes stared at her right hand with pain across her face. When she tried to move and flex her fingers, it only caused her more pain.

"Hikari, are you okay?" She heard a worried voice called out to her.

Hikari took a deep breath, and turned to Ariel. "Yeah, I'm good… a little dizzy though. You?" she quickly recovered, ignoring the throbbing pain in her right hand. She took the keyblade off from the ground with her left hand before regrouping with Ariel.

"We're fine." Ariel replied.

The brunette nodded before turning her head to face the Heartless.

"Hikari!" a familiar voice shouted, followed by a keyblade hitting the Heartless' side. A loud clang was heard when the keyblade made impact with the Heartless. Hikari's eyes followed the keyblade as it spun back to the owner. A look of relief washed over her face when she saw Roxas swimming towards her.

What shocked her the most was Triton following after Roxas, his trident pointed at the Heartless. A ray of light was shot from the trident, hitting the Heartless to knock it further away from Ariel, Hikari and Flounder.

"Woah!" Flounder said in amazement.

"Woah is right!" Hikari gawked.

"Hikari! You okay?" Roxas appeared beside her, staring at her worriedly.

Hikari blinked and nodded her head, a smile on her face. "Yeah, I'm fine, but did you see how King Triton shot that Heartless?!" she said, a look of amazement across her face.

The two keyblade wielders quickly turned their attention back to the Heartless when it recovered from Triton's attack.

"Leave this to me!" Roxas shouted as he swam towards the Heartless, his keyblade in his grasp.

Hikari was about to follow him, but a few Heartless blocked her path. She quickly positioned herself to a fighting stance, glaring at the Heartless in her way. She swung her keyblade, slashing the fish Heartless across. As she fought the lesser Heartless, her eyes couldn't help but glance at Roxas once in a while. He was fighting a large Heartless by himself. She wanted to help him, but she has to defeat the lesser Heartless first if she doesn't want the lesser Heartless to interfere with Roxas' fight.

Roxas swam up, avoiding the Heartless' deadly tail. It was hard to defeat it underwater. He managed to land a few hits to weaken the Heartless, but when he was about to continue his combo, the Heartless kept on swimming away. His eyes widened when the Heartless suddenly changed its route. He quickly raised his keyblade to block the attack.

"Argh!" Roxas shouted in pain when he was thrown back by force.

Hikari turned her head, watching Roxas being thrown away. "Roxas!" her eyes widened as Roxas floated down to the bottom with his keyblade out of reach. She quickly abandoned the Heartless around her to help Roxas. The Heartless blocked her path once more, angering the keyblade wielder. "Out of my way!" she shouted, swinging her keyblade at the Heartless.

It didn't take a lot for her to finish the Heartless.

Roxas groaned as he pushed himself up with his elbows. "That hurts…" he held his head as he glanced up. His eyes widened when the Blue Trident Tail was heading towards his way. He searched around him, looking for his keyblade.

A ray of blue light hit the Heartless' tail, preventing it from moving because of the blocks of ice that materialized between the joints on the tail and the body. The attack a followed by another one, this time with the keyblade. The keyblade spun around and landed a hit to the Heartless' head, knocking it to the side.

"Roxas!" Hikari's voice snapped Roxas away from his thoughts. He glanced over to Hikari before nodding his head. He swam up and caught Hikari's keyblade.

The Nobody lunged at the Heartless and swung the keyblade, a battle cry escaped his lips as he slashed his keyblade across.

The Blue Trident Tail disappeared in a black smoke, leaving a large heart behind.

Roxas stared as the heart floated up to the surface.

"Nice hit, Rox." Hikari said, appearing behind him.

The blond turned around and gave a tired smile. "Thanks." His eyes traveled down to the keyblade in Hikari's hand. "Oh, um, here's your keyblade back." he said, handing the blueish purple keyblade to the wielder.

Hikari nodded, switching the keyblade. Her eyes twitched a little when she grabbed her keyblade from Roxas' hand with her right. She quickly summoned away the keyblade and lowered her hand.

Roxas noticed the look across Hikari face, but it was quickly replaced with a smile. The blond stared at her before returning her smile with an unsure one, dismissing his keyblade.

"Ariel!" Triton swam towards his daughter, his arms opened wide. He embraced his daughter and placed his large hands on her shoulders. "Are you injured?" he asked worriedly.

"No." Ariel smiled, shaking her head before she threw herself to her father's chest, hugging him in a tight embrace. "I'm sorry for everything…"

Triton stroked his daughter's hair. "No, Ariel, I'm the one who should apologize." Both Roxas and Hikari stood a few feet apart from the King and his daughter. The king turned to face the two keyblade wielders, a smile on his face. "I thank the both of you for your gratitude, my kingdom and I owe the both of you very much." He swam closer to them, a hand placed on his chest.

Hikari shook her head. "No worries! You can always count on us!" she pointed her thumb to herself before pointing it at Roxas.

Triton nodded his head. He raised his trident and a soft glow began to emit from it. He directed the trident at Hikari and Roxas. The two keyblade wielders were covered in light, but as soon as the light fades away, nothing happened to them both.

Roxas blinked, staring at his hands and then to his tail. "Huh? Nothing happened…"

"It is a spell, once you reach dryland, you shall revert back to your human forms." Triton said, low enough for only the two to hear. Roxas and Hikari nodded their head in understanding. "And if you return to this world, your forms will automatically change back to the forms you are in now." He finished.

"Awesome!" Hikari exclaimed.

Roxas laughed. "Now this is the Hikari that I know."

"Hey!" Hikari pouted.

"I guess it's time we go back." Roxas announced, glancing up to the surface. It was beginning to get dark, and he was sure both sides from Organization XIII and Hikari's committee would question their absence.

"Already?" Ariel swam towards them.

Hikari nodded. "Yeah, it's a long swim back to where we came from…literally." She joked and Roxas nudged her right arm gently. "Not sure how we'll get back now though… the Star Shard was our ticket out..." she sighed out, remembering that she lost the Star Shard.

Roxas placed his hand on her shoulder. "Hey, we can always use my portal." He whispered.

"I guess…"

"Oh! You mean that star-thingy?" Ariel suddenly exclaimed, surprising the brunette. The redhead reached inside her satchel and took out a blue and greenish star. "We found it near the sunken ship. It floated down just like a starfish!" she explained, holding out the item.

"The Star Shard!" Hikari's face instantly brightened. "Thanks, Ariel!" she took the Star Shard back, staring at it with a big smile across her face.

Ariel nodded her head. "Come back and visit soon! We still have a lot to talk about!" she smiled.

"Yeah!" Flounder nodded his head in agreement.

Sebastian crossed his pincers, a smile on his usually grumpy face. "Do come back in time for the concert!"

Triton nodded his head. "The both of you are always welcomed in my kingdom."

Both Roxas and Hikari bowed their head.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Fuuh! Thank goodness the day is over!"

"Yeah."

Just as Triton said, as soon as they reached dryland, they went back to their forms as humans. When they reached land, the sun was beginning to set. The sky was a dark orange with a mix of red. A few stars could already be seen in the low lighting. The sound of the wave gently hitting the shore was calming for them to hear. They decided to take a little rest before going back to their own world.

"This… almost rivals the sunset at Twilight Town…" Roxas smiled, staring across the horizon.

Hikari stared at her hands before taking out her camera. "This is the first time that you didn't go to the clock tower with Axel and Xion after meeting me, right? Are you okay with this?" she asked, her eyes locked on the buttons on her camera.

Roxas turned his head. "Yeah, why not? I mean, I get to know you better and have an extra mission. I'm sure Axel and Xion won't mind me miss a day."

"Still, they are your best friends." Hikari said.

The Nobody crossed his arms. "And you're not?" he frowned a little. "You're my best friend too, you know. You can have more than two best friends."

The brunette laughed. DiZ was wrong about Nobodies, because the Nobody beside her surely has a heart. For her, she always feels like Roxas is different. He's a Nobody and yet, he acted like any other teenage boy. Though, it is said that Nobodies acted their emotions from their memories, but she knew that Roxas didn't.

"Yeah, you're right." Hikari handed him a piece of photopaper.

Roxas took the photo and stared at the picture of him, Hikari and Sebastian with the kingdom of Atlantica as the background. "Hikari?"

"Hmm?" Hikari hummed in reply.

"Next time… I want you to meet Axel and Xion." Roxas stated.

Hikari turned her head to face the Nobody. Her shocked expression turned to a soft smile.

"I'd like that."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was night time when Hikari arrived back at Hollow Bastion.

The brunette stood in front of Merlin's House, holding her wrist. The pain in her wrist seemed to increase each passing second. No matter how many times she casted cure to heal it, the spell only lessened the pain for a few minutes before it disappeared, leaving nothing but a cured hand. She didn't tell Roxas about her injury since she didn't want him to worry over her again. He had been worrying about her all day, and she was the one actually worried about him because of it.

A sigh escaped her lips as she covered the swollen part of her wrist with her glove. She didn't want to worry the committee as well. The last time she made them worried, Yuffie was panicking like a chicken before Leon calmed her down.

Hikari was lucky that she's an ambidextrous.

"I'm back!" The brunette shouted into the house as she opened the door. She didn't even go through the door when Yuffie appeared in front of her, a teasing look across the young woman's face. "What? What's with that look?" she asked, a suspicious look across her face.

"You've been gone an awfully long time, missy!" Yuffie moved her finger in a 'tsk'ing gesture. She straightened her posture and took a few steps back, letting the brunette inside the house. "So? Where have you and your secret boyfriend been all afternoon?" she asked straightly to the point.

Hikari almost tripped over her own foot. "Not again! Yuffie! I told you before! He's just a friend!" she groaned, facepalming.

Yuffie wrapped her arm around Hikari's neck, "Oh, c'mon! You don't have to lie! I can keep a secret! I promise I won't tell anyone!" she winked.

The brunette gave a dirty look. "Yeah, just like the time when you promised not to tell on me when I was the one who pranked Cid." She said sarcastically.

Yuffie retreated back. "Touché…"

"But Yuffie is right, you've been gone for a long time. You missed dinner." Aerith appeared from the kitchen, bringing out a tray of leftovers. She placed the tray on the table and motioned for Hikari to sit down and eat. The brunette followed her instruction and sat down. "Did something happened?" the woman asked, taking a seat beside the young girl.

"Not at all." Hikari lied, taking the spoon with her left hand. It was beef stew.

"C'mon kiddo, we all know that you're lying." Cid said as he turned his chair to face the girl. The man crossed his arms, squinting his eyes at Hikari to see any signs of lying. "It's gonna take you years to fool these sharp eyes." He said, pointing his finger to his left eye.

Leon sighed, picking the glass of water from the table. "If she doesn't want to say it then don't force her to say it—,"

"You wanna know the truth? Well, I kissed—!"

Leon spitted out the water he was drinking.

Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing, even Cloud.

"Wait—what?"

Yuffie blinked. "No way! You're lying!"

"For real kid?" Cid's toothpick fell to the floor.

Hikari shook her head. "Yep! I kissed a wall and I'm proud of it." She stayed silent for a few second before bursting out in laughter. "Oh man! You guys should've seen the look on your faces! It was hilarious! I should've taken a picture of it!" she continued on laughing.

The scarred man pinched the bridge of his nose. "Should've expected that answer…" he mumbled under his breath.

Cloud snorted. "Typical."

Yuffie puffed out her cheeks. "No fair! I thought you really kissed!"

Hikari made a fake gagging sound. "Disgusting! Now leave me to eat in peace before I really gagged on you!" she threatened the young ninja with her spoon.

Aerith shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "Oh yeah," she said, making Hikari turn to face her. "Merlin wanted to see you in the training room after you got back, but he could wait after you finish your dinner."

"Okay, thanks, Aerith!" Hikari said before taking a spoonful of stew.

There was a moment of silence between the committee.

"Didn't know you were ambidextrous." Cloud stated, staring at Hikari's left hand.

After Cloud mentioned it, Leon turned his head to look at her hands.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I guess I'm just that awesome!" Hikari grinned, giving a pose with her right hand.

Yuffie snorted. "Pfffttt! Show-off." She coughed into her fist.

"It's called skills." Hikari stick her tongue out at the black-haired ninja. She didn't want to show her surprise when Cloud pointed out that she could use her left hand as well. It amazed her that Cloud noticed her using her left hand faster than anyone in the room. The one who seemed not to care the most, is the one who is most observant. She continued to eat under the watchful eyes of Cloud, who was staring at how she used her hand. In order to avoid another round of questions from Cloud, she quickly finished her dinner. "Finished! Thanks for the meal, Aerith!" she said her thanks to the chef before standing up.

"Don't worry, I'll wash the dishes for you. You go on ahead and see what Merlins wants." Aerith gave a kind smile, taking the dirty plates and glasses to the kitchen.

"Thanks, Aerith!" Hikari exclaimed from the stairs, avoiding both Leon and Cloud's intense stare. She made her way up the stairs normally, trying not to run up the wooden stairs. As soon as she was out of earshot, she let out a loud sigh of relief. "Geez! What is up with those two…" she said to herself, walking towards the door to the left.

She stopped in front of a wooden door, taking a deep breath.

And knocked on the door twice.

"The door's open!" a voice replied from the other side.

The door creaked open and she peeked her head inside the room.

Her eyes widened when she not only saw Merlin, but another person as well.

"Come in, come in, my dear! There's someone who wants to see you!"

Hikari stepped inside the room, the door behind her closing with a click.

A laugh was heard. "It's been awhile, Hikari!"

It was a mouse wearing a black coat.

A grin made its way up to Hikari's face. All the tiredness and pain washed away when she saw her master and friend.

"Mickey!"

* * *

Scrapbook Entry 27 Entered.

* * *

A/N: I'll be honest, Atlantica isn't my forte haha… it was fun writing the chapter though! It's hard to get out of writer's block haha. What do you guys think?

Anyway, Little Adventures has ended! And with a bonus chapter left!

What do you guys think of overall the doujinshi?


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: special thanks to everyone who was read, reviewed, faved and followed this story!

 **A special announcement!**

 **Little Adventures is finally completed! Hooray! In total of eight chapters for the past year. Thank you guys so much for the support!**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed the doujinshi and the story**

 **Thank you guys so much and hope that you guys also look forward to the future stories I'm about to make for Hikari! 😃**

 **Please give me your thoughts and opinions about the doujinshi. I would love to hear what you guys think!**

 **should I make another one?**

Guest: here's the next chapter!

Stormfall: Thank you so much! And she better see Aerith or a doctor! Lol

Lulu9814: Thank you so much!

c-guest: hehe, you're welcome! Good luck with college!

Gry21: Thanks for the suggestion ^^

Draconicflare: Maybe someday in the future, they will have that birthday party together TT^TT. And thank you so much! I guess it could be a KHUX medal lol. And thank you! LOL! So true about Sebastian. He had seven girls to take care of!

TheIrishWriter: I changed it up a little because… logic? LOL haha. And thanks!

Kingdom Hearts © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 16  
Lend

* * *

 _Beep_

 _Beep_

"Ugh… Turn your alarm off!"

 _Beep_

 _Beep_

Yuffie shifted to sleep on her side, covering her head with her pillow. The room was still dark, despite it being seven in the morning. It only had two small windows. One beside the wardrobe and one beside Hikari's bed. There were only two, but once the curtains are opened, it's enough to fill the room with enough light. Yuffie was glad that Hikari choose the bed beside the window, something about watching the stars. Yuffie didn't like sleeping beside a window since 'the stinging sunlight sometimes bothered her sleep'.

 _Beep_

 _Beep_

A groan escaped Yuffie's lips as she pushed herself up with her elbows. "C'mon, Hikari! It's been beeping for a while now!" she complained, turning her head to face her roommate's bed.

 _Beep_

The alarm clock kept on beeping and there was no reply from the girl.

Yuffie opened her eyes, squinting. "Hikari?" she raised the back of her hand to her eyes, trying to rub the sleepiness away.

The bed was empty.

"Huh?" Yuffie quickly pulled the blanket off and jumped out of her bed. She turned her head to look at the alarm clock and picked it up, bringing it closer to her face. She pushed the button on top of the alarm clock, shutting off the alarm. She placed the alarm clock back to the nightstand and stared at the empty bed confusedly. "That's… weird?" she mumbled, scratching the back of her head.

It was weird seeing the bed empty at seven o'clock in the morning. Usually, they were the last ones in the committee to wake up. Aerith would be the one who wakes them up or Leon, when they refused to wake up. They usually ended up with a bucket of water dumped on their face.

The black-haired girl turned her head to the window beside the wardrobe. She walked towards the window and opened the curtain to glance out. There were people walking around, but no sight of her roommate outside.

She sniffed the air when she smelled something delicious coming from downstairs. _'Maybe, she's already eating breakfast.'_

"Oh? You're up."

Yuffie turned around. "Morning Aerith!" she chirped.

"Good morning, Yuffie." Aerith greeted back, standing by the door. "It's unusual for you to wake up early." She giggled behind her hand.

Yuffie grinned. "What can I say? I can't resist the smell of your pancakes!" she clapped her hands together and opened the shared-wardrobe. She took out her clothes and held them in her arms as she headed towards the door. Aerith stepped out of the way for her. "Well! I better hurry up and get ready! Or else Hikari's gonna finish all of the pancakes!" she joked, walking towards the bathroom down the hall.

"Hikari? She's not downstairs." Aerith blinked.

The black-haired girl stopped. "What?" she turned around to face the young woman, a frown on her lips. "Well, Hikari wasn't in bed when I woke up… it's weird…" she stated.

"Bathroom?" Aerith suggested and they both headed to the bathroom. They stood in front of the door and they couldn't hear any running water coming from inside. "Hikari? Are you in there?" the young woman asked, knocking the wooden door twice. When there was no answer, she pushed down the handle and opened the door. "She's not here." She said.

"What?" Yuffie almost shouted. "Are you sure that she's not downstairs? Maybe she's using an invincible cloak or something to steal pancakes?"

Aerith shook her head, closing the bathroom door. "Perhaps, Leon might've seen her… He is the first one to wake up." She said.

Both Aerith and Yuffie headed down stairs to the main room. They both looked around from the stairs. There were Leon, Cloud and Cid, but no sight of the young brunette anywhere. Leon turned his head to the stairs when he noticed the two girls were still standing on the stairs.

"You managed to woke those two up without calling for me? That's impressive." Leon commented, taking the mug of coffee from the table. He turned his head away to drink his coffee.

Cid laughed. "Looks like you won't need the bucket anymore!" he joked before eating his pancake.

"Hey! I'm offended!" Yuffie shouted, pointing her finger accusingly at both Leon and Cid. She shook her head, trying to get her thoughts straight. "So, wait… You didn't see Hikari this morning?" she asked the scarred man.

Leon turned in his seat. "Should I? As far as I know, you two never woke up this early in the morning."

Aerith continued her way down the stairs. "She wasn't in bed when Yuffie woke up and she wasn't in the bathroom… Unless…" she stopped wondering around the room, a hand on her chin. A gasp escaped her lips. "You don't think that she might've gotten up early to explore the dark Vale, do you?" she folded her hands in front of her in worry.

Everyone in the committee knew about Hikari's growing curiosity about the dark towers in the Vale beyond the check point. All this time, she always admitted that she was too scared to go alone. They didn't expect her to just woke up early in the morning with some new courage to explore an area that's beyond her and anyone's level in the committee.

"Seriously?" Cid's pancake dropped from his fork to his plate before he slammed the fork down to the table. "That kid should've known better than to go to that place alone. Even these two can't handle it!" he pointed his thumb over his shoulder to Cloud and Leon.

Cloud snorted in reply.

"We should check, just in case." Leon stood up from his seat.

The spiky-haired blond followed his lead.

"Goodness! What is with all of the commotion this early in the morning?" Merlin came down the stairs, holding the railing. The wooden stairs creaked under his feet as he walked down. He fixed his glasses as he stared at the worried looks of the committee. "My, my, did I miss something?" he cleared his throat.

"Hikari's gone to the Dark Vale!" Yuffie shouted.

Merlin blinked. "Hikari? The Dark Vale?" he echoed. He suddenly let out a short laugh as he made his way to the table. "Oh goodness, you lots are worrying over nothing!" he sat down on the chair and snapped his fingers, making a cup of tea appear in his hand.

"What do you mean?" Cid asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hikari didn't go to the Dark Vale. Why, she's doing a special errand for me!" Merlin chuckled, bringing the cup to his lips. He took a sip from his tea and placed the cup on the table. "And may I tell you, she's really excited to go!"

Cloud crossed his arms. " _Really_? Early in the morning?" he questioned.

"Sounds to me that you lot really care about young Hikari, especially you, Cloud." Merlin let out a laugh when the blond looked away with his arms crossed. "Well, it's good to know that everyone here cares for one and another." He continued.

"Whatever…" Cloud said before walking back to his seat.

"Wait… so we got worked up over nothing?" Yuffie pouted as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Seems like it." Leon sighed before he sat back down.

Cid clicked his tongue. "That kid's gonna give us all heart attacks." He said grumpily.

Aerith shook her head. "We should've trusted Hikari more." She said with a smile. "It was wrong of me to conclude so quickly." She admitted her mistake.

Yuffie nodded her head in agreement. "So, what kind of errand did you tell Hikari to do?" she turned to the wizard dressed in blue, her hands on her hips as she leaned forward.

Merlin smiled.

"Tis a secret!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Yawn_

"… Do we really have to wake up at five?" Hikari squinted her eyes, trying to rub the sleepiness away. Sure, both Mickey and Merlin had woken her up a while ago, but she was still feeling rather sleepy. She tucked her hands in her pockets as the morning air blew pass. Despite wearing the Organization's black cloak, it was a rather cold morning. "Couldn't we just wake up like normal? I'm sure Riku, Naminé, or even DiZ aren't even up this early…" she couldn't stop yawning.

Mickey glanced over his shoulder. "I'm sorry we had to wake you up this early, Hikari." he gave an apologetic smile. "Before we go to Twilight Town, there's a place that we need to go first." He said, balling his hands up to fists.

The brunette raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Wait a minute… Where are we anyway?" she suddenly asked, finally realizing her surroundings.

She knew that Merlin had used the teleportation magic on them both, but she never payed attention to where he _exactly_ teleported them to. She was half-asleep and since Mickey said that he would take her to see Riku and Naminé, she believed that they would go straight to Twilight Town without any stopover.

"Wait—this is Castle Oblivion!" The brunette shouted in realization when she noticed the familiar intimidating castle, standing not far from them. The sight of Castle Oblivion was enough to wake her up fully. She could still remember the events that happened inside the castle. Not all of them were pleasant memories.

The King nodded his head. "Do you remember? This place used to be the Organization's second base." He reminded as he furrowed his eyebrows, staring intently at the castle's door. "At this moment, it's empty. We can't let this slip pass." He stated, turning to face his apprentice. "This is our chance to investigate whatever they are hiding." He continued.

Hikari stared at her master before nodding her head. "I understand." She replied before turning her head to look at the castle's doors.

Mickey turned to look at the door too. "I visited this place a few times before, but they were cut short when I saw an Organization member patrolling around. I was lucky that he never noticed…" he let out a soft sigh, lowering his head.

The brunette tilted her head, a small frown on her lips.

"Let's hurry. Who knows how much time we have left until the Organization decided to come again." Mickey raised his chin up and walked towards the castle.

"Yeah…" Hikari nodded her head in agreement.

They both stood in front of the large doors. They exchanged looks and nodded their head before opening one of the doors. Mickey placed both his gloved hands on the surface while Hikari used her left shoulder to push the door open. Every time she tried to move her right hand, it sends up a throbbing pain to her nerve system. She never told Merlin or Mickey about her injury. It was hard trying to hide it from them, but she managed by faking to use her right hand when her left hand is the one doing all the work.

The large door slowly creaked open, leaving a small gap enough for them to slip in. After they stepped inside the castle, the door closed by itself.

Hikari closed her eyes. "Geez… I forgot how white and bright this castle is on the inside…" she complained, squinting her eyes as her eyes slowly adjusted to the bright lighting.

The two headed towards the first door and they pushed it open. Hikari's eyes glanced around the large room. This used to be the first floor—or Traverse Town in her perspective. Her eyes scanned the blank room. There wasn't anything in it except for the door across the room, along with another door to her left. She walked towards the other door, staring at it with a raised eyebrow.

"Where does this lead?" Hikari asked, pointing her finger at the door.

Mickey's footsteps echoed in the spacious room. "That one leads to the basement level." He answered, standing beside the girl. "Do you think that it's best if we split up?" he suddenly asked.

The brunette blinked. "Well… we'll cover more ground if we split up…" she said. She agreed fully with Mickey. It wasn't that she wanted to wonder off on her own in the castle. She would've disagree with Mickey if she didn't know who the wondering Organization member is. Somehow, she was certain that the Organization member wondering around the castle is Axel. If they didn't split up, there would be a possibility that her deal with Axel won't work since there's a third party.

"Okay then! We'll meet back here in two hours. If you happen to encounter an Organization member, just use this, okay?" Mickey reached something inside his pocket and pulled a small charm in the shape of a star. He handed the charm to Hikari and she stared confusedly at it. "The charm is infused with my magic. When you activated the charm, it'll inform me that you activated it and I'll be there in a jiffy!" he reassured.

Hikari stared at the little charm in awe. "Wow… How do I use it?"

"Focus your light on it, just like how you summon the keyblade." Mickey smiled, placing a hand over his heart. "It will release an attack to give you some time to escape and for me to reach you." He explained, pulling out a similar charm to show her.

The brunette stared at the star charm with a smile. It was nostalgic to hold the star charm that was the exact same one Ventus gave her when she was a child. Her charm was completely destroyed by the Masked Boy—or Vanitas as she remembered the raven-haired in her memories. She still had a small piece of what remained from the charm. She kept in a small glass bottle. It was the only piece that she could find after Vanitas crushed it.

"The magic casted on the charm is a magic called 'Pearl'. I'll teach you how to cast Pearl later on." Mickey chuckled when he noticed the look across his apprentice's face.

"Really?!" Hikari shouted in excitement.

"Of course!" Mickey nodded his head. "Now let's find out what the Organization is hiding in Castle Oblivion." He said.

"Right."

The two keyblade wielders split up, with Mickey heading to the basement level and Hikari heading to the next floor. Hikari stopped for a brief moment, glancing over her shoulder to look at the door Mickey had gone through. She took a deep breath before continuing her way to the next floor. She only had two hours to search the entire castle. Thirteen floors to be exact. She silently hoped that all of the other floors are just like the first one, empty. If each floor has around four to six rooms, it would be difficult for her to search one by one.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Click_

"Nothing here either…" Hikari let out a sigh as she closed the door. She turned to look at the last door on the eighth floor.

Almost two hours passed and she was only at the eighth floor. There weren't any rooms from the second to the sixth floor, but starting from the seventh, that's when the room began to multiple. Every single room were the same. A standard white bedroom. Everything in it were white, including the furniture. Sure, it made her job a lot easier to look for some books or other suspicious items, but the color did make it difficult for her to walk around without stubbing her toe on the furniture.

"Last room on this floor…" the brunette mumbled under her breath, reaching her left hand out to the door knob.

"Well, now that's just rude." A voice startled her. She quickly retreated her hand back and turned around. She positioned herself to a battle stance before realizing who the person is. It was the fiery red-headed Nobody, Axel. "Aren't you going to knock first? That is my room, you know." He pointed out, his arms crossed.

Hikari let out a loud sigh of relief. "Axel…"

The Nobody recognized the voice.

"Hikari? That's you under there?" Axel blinked, leaning his body forward a little. He squinted his eyes as he tried to get a better look at the girl's face hidden beneath the hood.

The brunette nodded her head before pulling the hood down. "It's been awhile, huh?" she grinned.

Axel placed his hand on his forehead. "It's a good thing I didn't just jump into conclusions… otherwise, you'll be nothing but ashes by now." He shook his head, moving his hand.

Hikari gave him a dirty look. "Gee… thanks, _friend_." She said sarcastically.

"Anytime, _pal_." Axel retorted with the same tone, a playful smirk across his lips. He walked closer to the girl. His eyes scanned the girl's attire and hummed. "Anyway… What are you doing here anyway? Wearing an Organization coat at that too." He questioned.

"I'm here with Mickey." Hikari said honestly.

Axel almost tripped at the brunette's honesty.

"…should you really be sharing that with me?" Axel rubbed the back of his neck, a concerned look across his face.

Hikari frowned at him. "We had a deal, right? Don't tell me you're going to backstab me—,"

"Of course not!" Axel chuckled. He remembered the deal he made with the girl. He never planned to rant her out to the Organization. He just didn't expect her to just blurt out the truth to him about someone else. "A deal's a deal." He ruffled the girl's hair.

Hikari took a step back, stopping Axel from ruffling her hair. "So, what about you? What are you doing here anyway? I thought there's nothing more for you to do here?" she asked, looking up to look at the man's face.

Axel looked away before turning around. He walked away from the brunette and stopped at the middle of the room, his back facing the girl. Hikari stared confusedly at her friend before following his lead. She stopped a few feet away from him and waited for an answer.

"You know what I'm here for, Lil' Red." Axel said quietly.

There was a moment of silence.

Hikari's eyes widened for a split second as she realized Axel's motive. "To look for the Chamber of Waking?" she said and Axel nodded his head. The brunette looked away, staring at the floor with a frown. That had been his mission ever since they met. "What does your leader really want with that room anyway? It's not like there's some super-secret treasure in it, right?" she joked, laughing a little.

She knew what or more exactly— _who_ is inside the Chamber of Waking because of Naminé.

Axel stayed silent.

The brunette stopped. "Wait—what? Are you serious? There's really a super-secret treasure in that room?" she faked her surprised look.

The Nobody turned to look at the brunette. "Though it doesn't really fit the category of treasure to everyone… Only a certain few viewed it as so, you and I are included, Lil' Red." He placed his hand over his chest.

"Me?" Hikari pointed to herself.

Axel nodded his head. "It's pointless though," he let out a sigh as he walked towards the door that lead to the next floor. His boots clicked against the floor, the sound of his footsteps echoing in the room. "That room can't be found. Every single time I searched for it, I could never find it. It's almost as if this castle never wants anyone to find it." He waved his hand, slouching a little.

Hikari glanced around the room before focusing her attention on the Nobody. "So… like if I also look for that room, I would just be going around in circles?" she asked.

The redhead turned around, a grin on his face. "Bingo! You could say that anyone who comes here would be 'lost to oblivion'." He quoted, revering to the castle's name. He straightened his posture and placed a hand on his hip. "What got you interested in the Chamber of Waking too? Do you even know what's inside?" he stared at the girl.

Hikari let out a hum, "Well other than your leader wanting to find it… You also said that whatever is inside the room is important to both me and you." She began her reason. She remembered Naminé telling her that _it wasn't the right time to find the room_ , but she wanted to know where it is so she could be there when the time comes. "Never hurt to try and find out, right?" she finished, a grin on her face.

Axel snorted. "I guess," he smirked at the girl.

"Hey—what does that—,"

"Anyway," Axel cut her off, making the girl raised her eyebrow at him. Her eyes followed as he paced around the room before deciding to continue where he left off. "Though it's a smart move to wear the coat, you should still be careful around here. I'm not the only one Xemnas will send to look for that room." He warned.

Hikari nodded her head slowly. "Got it…"

"Well, it's time for me to go!" The Nobody glanced over his shoulder, flashing the brunette a smirk. A dark portal was summoned and before he stepped inside, he gave a two-finger salute. "Until next time, Lil' Red."

Before Hikari could've replied, the portal disappeared.

"See you later… Axel."

The silence returned.

' _Well… I guess I'll just meet up with Mickey…'_ the brunette thought, noticing that the time is almost up. She pulled up her hood to cover her face.

As she turned around to head back to the first floor, she suddenly feels a little lightheaded. Everything was blurry for a few seconds as the headache continued. She kneeled down to the floor, a hand on her head as she tried to ease the throbbing pain. Not a minute later, the pain subsided.

"What… was _that_?" she groaned, pulling herself up to her feet.

She staggered a few times before finally finding her balance to stand up properly. She lifted her gaze up and her eyes widened when she saw a hooded figure standing not far from her. The figure—a man—was wearing the Organization's coat. What made the brunette more alarmed than before was because she realized the Organization member is not Axel.

Hikari's hand twitched, trying to decide whether or not she should use the charm Mickey gave her. Neither of the two made a move to attack one and another.

' _Maybe… he thinks that I'm one of them? There is another girl in the Organization…'_ the brunette thought, relaxing her hand. She remembered from Roxas' stories that there is another female member—Xion. His friend to be precise. _'I should just… play along I guess?'_ she took a deep breath.

She decided not to use the charm like Mickey told her to when she encountered an Organization member. She decided to let things play out for now. If the Organization does attack her, she could handle it herself. She didn't want to trouble Mickey any further.

The Organization member moved, walking towards her in a steady pace.

The brunette stiffened and tried her best not to show it.

The two passed by each other.

Hikari averted her gaze to look at the face beneath the hood as they crossed paths. Other than the shape of the man's nose, she couldn't see anything else. She continued her way towards the door, trying not to stare too long.

She stopped right in front of the door, listening as the man's footsteps continued. She pulled the door open and stepped out of the room.

As soon as the door behind her closed, Hikari let out the breath she had been holding.

"That was… tensed!" Hikari sighed out sharply, leaning back against the door. She straightened her posture before gazing at the door on the other side. She might've been able to slip pass the Organization member by faking to be Xion, but Mickey's ears couldn't fool anyone. "Gotta warn Mickey!" she ran towards the door.

It didn't take her as long as it did when she was going up the stairs.

A familiar hooded figure with round ears on top was seen going out of the door from the basement level.

"Mickey!"

Said mouse turned to see Hikari running towards him. She skidded to a stop in front of him, a hand on her knee to support her as she tried to catch her breath. The mouse stared at the girl, waiting patiently for her to recover from her run.

"Mickey, we have to go! There's an Organization member!" Hikari wheezed out, turning her head to look at her master.

Mickey's eyes widened. "Then it's best if we get out of here now. We can talk what we found later." he nodded his head in agreement before the two ran towards the exit.

Unbeknown to them, the same Organization member Hikari saw was staring at their retreating form.

He stayed silent.

Hikari slowed down from her run when she felt a presence. Mickey ran on ahead as she looked back. Her eyes widened when she saw the Organization member.

The man did nothing to attack. He turned around and disappeared in a blink of an eye, fading out of sight.

The brunette stared at the spot where the man disappeared.

"Hikari?"

Mickey's voice snapped her back to reality. She turned around and saw Mickey was already waiting for her at the opened door. She ran towards him and they both exited the castle. The door closed by itself as the two keyblade wielders stand in front of it.

"What's the matter? Did you see something?" Mickey asked in concern.

"Yeah… It was that Organization member, but… when he saw me… he didn't do anything at all." Hikari explained, staring at the door with a frown.

"I see…" Mickey hummed, placing a hand on his chin as he began to think. "We'll talk about this later, right now, did you bring the Star Shard?" he asked.

The brunette nodded and took the Star Shard out from her pocket. She didn't have to change out of her normal clothes when putting on the coat. It had some magic casted on it. So, whenever she took it off, she would be wearing her normal attire instead and when she puts it back on, her clothes wouldn't double over to make it hard to move. She had to thank Flora, Fauna and Merryweather for altering the coat.

Hikari gave the Star Shard to Mickey.

"Let's go." Mickey held out his hand to her and she took it. The mouse held the Star Shard up to the sky.

The Star Shard began to glow brightly, engulfing the two keyblade wielders before it took the them to the sky.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari opened her eyes when she felt her feet touched the ground. She glanced around at the new surroundings.

"This place is…"

They were in the front yard of an old looking mansion. The yard was filled with overgrown weeds, that looked as if it hasn't been cut off in decades. There were a few pillars lined up to the mansion's entrance, a few of them were broken with the pieces scattered nearby. Ivy vines covered the brick walls of the mansion along with the pillar and the fence's walls. The place looks abandoned. But what took her interest more is the color of the sky above them. They were painted a sunset color instead of the normal morning blue sky.

"This is Twilight Town." Mickey answered, making the brunette turn her attention to him. "It's located in between the realm of light and dark. As its implies, this world's sun is always at the same position, never rising nor setting." He explained and glanced over to look at the direction of the gates

Hikari followed his gaze. "Kind of like Traverse Town, huh?"

"Yup, that's right." Mickey confirmed. "Shall we go inside?" he directed his head to the old mansion.

The two keyblade wielders walked towards the entrance. Mickey pushed the door open and stepped inside, followed by his apprentice. Hikari's nose began to itch when dust flew around them as they opened the door.

The mansion was spacious, but it was also cramped with clutter and most importantly dust. Some of the furniture were covered with a white cloth, followed by a thick layer of dust. While others were left in the open. In the middle of the Foyer, a broken glass case was placed. There were two grand staircases, one on the left and one of the right. Between the staircases, a courtyard was seen from the glass doors.

"You know that saying? The one that goes like _'don't judge a book by its cover'_?" Hikari began as she walked further inside the mansion, following Mickey's lead. "Yeah, well, I think it works here. The outside actually looks better. This place is a mess—" She sneezed loudly.

"Bless you," Mickey said as he glanced over his shoulder.

Hikari sniffled, wiping her nose with her gloved hand. "Thanks…" she followed Mickey up the left staircase. The stairs creaked loudly under her weight. She was actually scared that it might break. She quickened her pace, skipping a few steps to reach the second floor. Both Mickey and her followed the walkway to the door. "This room is…?" she trailed off.

"Naminé's." Mickey finished and motioned his hand for Hikari to open the door. "Go on! Naminé's waiting for you!" he smiled.

The brunette returned the smile.

"If you need anything, come down to the Computer room. Naminé can show you how to access it." Mickey said, pointing to the other side of the second floor.

"Thanks, Mickey."

"Anytime!" the mouse laughed before he left to go to the Computer room.

Hikari turned her head to look at the door. She raised her hand and knocked on the door twice before turning the knob to open it. The brunette peeked her head inside, glancing around the room. The room was all white, including the furniture. Just like Castle Oblivion's interior. The only difference is that the room at the Old Mansion had drawings stick on the plain walls. The brunette pushed the door open fully and stepped inside. There was no sight of the blonde girl anywhere inside the room.

"It's been awhile, Hikari."

The brunette literally jumped when she heard the voice. She quickly turned around to the source with a hand over her chest.

A giggle was heard. "Did I really surprise you that much?"

"Naminé!"

"Hika—" The girl dressed in white paused when Hikari threw herself at her, giving a tight yet comforting embrace at the same time. The girl couldn't help but smile and returned the hug with a gentle one. "I miss you too." She said softly.

Hikari's shoulders began to shake.

"Are you crying?" Naminé patted Hikari's back a few times.

The brunette pulled away, sniffling.

"N—No!" she denied, wiping the tears away furiously with her sleeve. "The dust just got into my eyes!" she blurted out the first excuse she could thought of.

Naminé smiled. "Of course."

"It's so great to see you again, Naminé." Hikari grinned, pulling her hood down. She hadn't heard news of her friend for a while and it made her worried. They were supposed to meet two weeks after she left the Mysterious Tower, but it turns out to be more than just a month. She hadn't seen her family and friends from Destiny Islands in a while also, but she sometimes dropped by a visit. Though not face to face, she observed from afar, watching how her family and friends are doing. "You and everyone moved so suddenly…" she expressed her sadness.

Naminé folded her hands in front of her chest. "I'm sorry, Hikari… It was planned for quite some time, but…" she trailed off.

The brunette was still upset that they never told her. "It's okay… I guess." She shook her head and gave her friend a smile. "So, what'cha been doing anyway?" she decided to change the topic.

"The usual." Naminé answered softly.

"Memory restoration?" Hikari asked and received a nod. "That's… um… do you ever go out? There has to be a town here, right?" she rubbed the back of her neck, trying to find another word other than 'boring'.

"There is, but DiZ never lets me go out in fear of the Organization finding out." Naminé walked towards the window and gaze out to look at the yard.

"What?!" Hikari basically screamed out, making Naminé turn her head in surprise. The brunette jogged towards her friend with a disbelieved look across her face. "DiZ never lets you out?! He's basically keeping you in here without any freedom!" she said angrily.

Naminé took Hikari's hand. "It's… for my own good." She smiled as she gave Hikari's hand a squeeze.

The keyblade wielder pursed her lips. "Let's go out. Together." She grabbed Naminé hands and held them in her grasp. "Just the two of us. I'll take you to any world and place you want to go. Staying here twenty-four seven is not healthy. You need the sun! The fresh air! The fun!" she said dramatically.

A giggle escaped the blonde's lips. "Thank you for the offer, Hikari." she thanked, making the brunette grin. "But with the Organization's frequent activity, it's best if I stay indoors for a while." She politely rejected Hikari's offer.

A disappointed look was seen across Hikari's face. "Oh…"

"Perhaps, someday… okay?" Naminé added.

"Yeah…"

Silence fell between the two girls.

"Hey Naminé?" Hikari began, breaking the silence. Said girl hummed in respond. The brunette hesitated for a moment. Sure, she had been meaning to ask about why Roxas looks like Ventus, but the words Vanitas said to her back in the memory version of where thousands of keyblades were seen made her confused. "I've been meaning to ask you this for a while… Back at Castle Oblivion, I went to this place… it looks like a keyblade warzone and then this guy—Vani—!" she stopped when Naminé held her hand out.

Naminé pressed her finger to her lips. "Ssshh." She shushed before glancing around the room. "I'm sorry, but I can't really answer that. Not here anyway…" she whispered quietly.

Hikari tilted her head. "Why?" she whispered back.

"Even the walls have ears too."

The brunette's heart jumped when the door creaked open. She peered over Naminé shoulder and saw Mickey walking inside the room. The two girls exchanged looks before nodding their head, silently agreeing to not tell anyone of their previous conversation.

"Sorry to interrupt you girls, but someone just wants to see you, Hikari." Mickey chuckled as he turned to the door.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Riku!" A huge grin was seen across her face as she saw the silver-haired teen walked inside.

Riku gave a smirk. "It's been awhile—!" he let out a grunt when Hikari ran into him, giving a tight embrace. A laugh escaped the teen's lips. "Someone's really hug-y today. You were always so emotional when it comes to this." He patted the girls' head a few times.

Hikari pulled away and suddenly punched Riku's shoulder.

"Ouch! Hey! What was that for?" Riku complained, rubbing his shoulder.

The brunette placed her hands on her hips. "For not visiting me earlier! You could've at least send me a letter or something." She huffed out, frowning at Mickey and Riku. "I was so worried that something bad might happened to all of you."

Mickey and Riku exchanged looks.

"Sorry…" the silver-haired teen apologized.

Hikari let out a deep sigh. "It's fine…" she straightened her posture and gave a smile to Riku, Mickey and Naminé. "I guess, the important thing is that all of you guys are safe and sound. I can rest in peace now." She placed her hand over her heart.

Riku snorted. "Quick being so dramatic." He ruffled the girl's hair.

The brunette swatted Riku's hand away playfully. From the previous day, Mickey admitted that he and Riku went their own separate ways. It was since they dropped her off at Hollow Bastion. The King also said that he hasn't seen the boy ever since, which made the brunette more worried than before. But now, seeing her friends together in the same room, it made her feel relieved and happy at the same time.

Even though a few were still missing from the picture.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was around noon when they decided that it was time to go back.

"You sure about this, Mickey?" Hikari questioned, staring at the mouse. She was a bit skeptical about the King taking a train to the Mysterious Tower. It wasn't that she thought it was weird about taking public transportation, but could public transportation actually take them to another world? "We can use the Star Shard, you know." She pulled out the shard.

Mickey laughed. "Don't worry, Hikari! This train connects Twilight Town and the Mysterious Tower together!" he said and as if on cue, a purple train arrived on the platform. The door hissed opened and he stepped inside the train. "I'll see you fellas later!" he waved his hand goodbye.

Both Riku and Hikari waved their hand goodbye and the door closed. The train let out a whistle before departing.

The two keyblade wielder's eyes followed as the train until it was out of their line of sight.

"Hey, Riku, you sure you don't want to come back to Hollow Bastion with me? The committee could use another helping hand!" Hikari grinned as the two walked out of the central station to the station plaza.

Riku smiled at Hikari's attempt. "Sorry, but I think I'll stay here and help DiZ out." He replied. He saw the way Hikari sighed in disappointment. It wasn't that he wanted to disappoint the girl, but he can't actually just walk around freely with the Organization around to hunt him down. "I'll come by and visit often. You should too. You did promise Naminé." He said, crossing his arms.

' _You should see someone about that hand, Hikari.'_

The brunette could still remember the words Naminé said to her before she left the Old Mansion. The pale blonde noticed the injury all this time and decided to confront her about it after everyone left the room.

' _It's not going to heal itself. You should stop trying to do things on your own.'_

Hikari nodded her head. "Definitely!" she held the Star Shard and turned to face Riku. "I guess, I'll see you later too, Riku!"

The silver-haired teen nodded. "See you later, Hikari."

"Alright Star Shard! Take me back to Hollow Bastion!" the brunette raised the shard up high, pointing it out to the sky.

Riku watched as the Star Shard took his friend away to the sky in a bright light. A smile was seen on his lips before it slowly disappeared. He turned his head to his left when he heard footsteps coming towards his way. He raised his hand, summoning the dark corridor. He stepped inside the portal and dismissed it quickly to avoid anyone seeing the dark portal.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"See someone about this hand, huh?" Hikari repeated Naminé's words. She gently held her right wrist, pulling up the glove a little to look at the swollen injury. She had taken off the Organization coat and folded it as tiny as she can to put inside a paper bag filled with the items Merlin 'requested'. It was a cover to tell the other committee members. "If cure can't do it, then what can a doctor do?" she sighed, slumping her shoulders.

"Hikari! You're back!" Aerith's voice greeted her from behind.

Said brunette turned around and replied, "I'm back!"

A smile was seen across Aerith's face. "Did you finished the errand Merlin gave you?" she asked.

"Yup!" Hikari raised the paper bag up, showing it to the young woman. "Still, can't believe he woke me up at five in the morning to do his shopping." She lied and gave a loud tired sigh.

Aerith giggled before she opened the door to Merlin's house. "You missed lunch, we still have some left overs. I'll heat it up for you." She said as she stepped inside.

"Oh, don't worry! I had a sandwich on my way here." Hikari turned down the offer, following Aerith inside. Her eyes glanced around, spotting Merlin by his chair and Cid by the computer. The rest of the committee were probably at the restoration site or patrolling the town. "Hey Gramps! Hey Merlin! I'm back!" she greeted the two older men, with a grin across her face.

Cid turned around in his seat, glaring at the nickname. "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me gramps?!" he huffed out.

Hikari stuck her tongue out at him as she made her way towards her mentor.

"Welcome back, my dear! Did you have fun?" Merlin chuckled, closing the book he was reading.

"Yeah, if you can say queuing for six hours is fun, then yeah, I had fun." Hikari lied. Merlin knew that the brunette and the king went to Castle Oblivion instead of doing 'Merlin's errands'. It was just something to say to the committee if they asked about her whereabouts. But in order to make it real, the brunette bought a few tea brands from Twilight Town. It was also to hide the Organization coat. "Don't know why people que that long for some tea…" she handed the paper bag to the wizard.

Merlin took the bag and peeked inside. "Well, it is known to be one of the best tea ever made!" he laughed, taking out a box. He played along well with Hikari's excuse. "How about we all try it for this afternoon tea?" he offered.

"Sure."

"Well, I'm going to put these away. I'll be back in a jiffy!" Merlin snapped his fingers and he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"How about some barley tea for now?" Aerith asked from the kitchen.

Hikari nodded her head. "Thanks, Aerith!"

Cid turned around in his seat to face the computer again. "You know, kid. You gave us a scare when you weren't in bed this morning." he said as he began to type on the keyboard. The brunette blinked a few times before deciding to approach the man. She stood beside him and kept on switching her gaze from the monitor and the man. "We all thought that you went to the Dark Vale or something."

The brunette almost lost her balance. " _What_? I'm not _that_ stupid to go there alone!" she complained, a little disappointed that they don't trust her. They actually thought that she would go to the Dark Vale when they specifically said not to. As much as she wanted to find out what was in the towers, she listened to the committee's advice and stayed away from ever going out to the vale. "Oh c'mon! You guys have so little faith in me!" she said dramatically.

Cid snorted in reply, "You were the one who's always saying that you wanted to find out what was there." He turned in his swivel seat and crossed his arms, giving the young girl a stern look. "Can't blame us for thinking it."

Hikari puffed out her cheeks, giving him a dirty look. "Well, yeah, but I was just _saying_ it... It doesn't mean that I would actually do it alone." she emphasized.

The man let out another sigh, taking the toothpick from his mouth. "Either way, we're glad you got back here safely. The last time you took off, it took you around more than a month to get back here." He rubbed the back of his neck.

The keyblade wielder stared at the man with a small frown. That time was her mistake. She was so caught up with spending time with Riku, Naminé and the others, that she forgot to inform everyone back in the committee. It wasn't that she didn't care about the committee, it was just that there was a lot of things that she had to figure out, she kind of forgot…

"Sorry…" Hikari apologized, rubbing the back of her neck guiltily.

A hand ruffled her hair, "Nah, don't worry about it, kiddo." Cid grinned.

The brunette smiled back.

The two of them turned their head to the door when they heard it creak.

"Oh, you're back early!" Aerith greeted as she stepped out of the kitchen with a tray of glasses filled with barley tea.

Cloud nodded his head in reply. His eyes glanced over to the brunette standing beside Cid. The spiky-haired blond placed his sword beside the door before making his way further inside the small house. His sharp gaze observed the way Hikari's move to take the glass from Aerith's hand.

"Don't you think it's rude?" Cloud suddenly spoke, making Aerith, Cid and Hikari look at him with confused looks.

Hikari blinked. "Uh—What?"

Cloud raised his right hand, pointing at it. "Shouldn't you use your right hand instead?"

The brunette turned to look at the hand she used to take the glass. "Oh! Uh… Sorry, Aerith…" she gave the woman a sheepish grin and lowered her left hand. She lifted her right hand and when she was about to take the glass, a hand grabbed her forehead, stopping her. "What—?! Hey, Cloud, what's the big idea?!" she shouted as she tried to pull her arm back from him.

Cloud ignored her.

"Cloud, I know it's impolite to use her left hand—," Aerith began, frowning at the blond's brash behavior.

"Take it off." The spiky-haired man ordered, releasing the girl's arm. There was a moment of silence between the four members of the committee. "Before I do it for you." He added, threatening in a low voice.

The brunette sighed. She knew what Cloud was referring to. Without any resistance, she pulled off her right glove, showing her swollen wrist. She looked away as she didn't have the courage to look at the surprised looks of the committee members.

"Since when did you get this!" Aerith held the brunette's hand gently. The young girl flinched at the light touch and the woman quickly retreated her hand away. "I'll go get some ice." She said and ran towards the kitchen, leaving the other three inside the room.

Hikari stayed silent, averting her gaze to the floor.

Cid crossed his arms. "Well?"

"Was it that friend of yours who did this?" Cloud asked, staring down at the girl.

"What?! No! No! Of course, not!" Hikari shouted, furrowing her eyebrows. Roxas would never hurt her and neither would she. Both Cid and Cloud stared at her, waiting for her explanation. She finally sighed out, slumping her shoulders when she couldn't handle the stares Cloud and Cid were giving her. "We were playing around and I tripped and fell… so… yeah…" she trailed off, rubbing the back of her neck with her left hand.

Cid pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why didn't you tell us sooner then?"

The brunette shrugged. "I don't know… I tried using cure, but it didn't work… so I thought maybe it'll go away on its own? I used to get a lot of sprains when playing baseball and they all go away in a matter of days." She admitted, remembering to the days back in Destiny Islands.

Cloud stepped aside when Aerith came back with a pack of ice.

"You should've told us right away when you got back home yesterday." Aerith chided as she pressed the ice pack on the swollen wrist. The young girl flinched when coldness touched her skin. She balled up her hands to try and ignore the pain. "There are some things that can't be healed with just cure. You need a higher-level spell to cure injuries like this." She continued.

"Okay…"

Aerith turned her head to Cloud. "Thank you, Cloud. If it wasn't for you, that injury could've gotten worse." She smiled.

Cloud scoffed. "It was too obvious." He said as he crossed his arms. "She was using her left hand when she's obviously more dominant with her right. Though she's ambidextrous, it was strange that she was suddenly using her left." He explained.

Hikari blew a raspberry at him. "I wouldn't have gotten away with it, if it wasn't for you, Detective Strife!" she joked, lowering her voice a little to sound like an old man. After she said it, Cid and Aerith stared to laugh with her included. Cloud on the other hand, didn't find the joke funny. As the laughter subsided, the girl turned to face the blond. "But thanks... for noticing, I would've just stayed quiet, if you didn't say anything about it." She grinned.

Cloud smirked, tucking his chin deeper inside his scarf. "Next time, try not to make everyone feel troubled by your stupid actions." He raised his hand and flicked Hikari's forehead.

"Ouch! Hey!"

They laughed at her.

Hikari couldn't help but smile.

The HBRC was like a second family to her.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Fira!"

Roxas quickly turned his gaze over his shoulder. "Thanks!" He swung his keyblade at the burning Heartless and jumped back to a safe distance as more Heartless came after him. He thrust his keyblade forward and dodge-rolled to avoid getting clawed. He raised his keyblade to block the attack before pushing the Heartless away. "Hyaaa!" he let out a battle cry as he took out the creature.

Truth be told, he couldn't wait until their mission ended. It was one of those days. The day luck was on his side. He and Axel had yet again managed to convince Saix into letting him and Xion do a mission together and it wasn't just any heart-collecting mission. The two Nobodies were sent to _Hollow Bastion_. The place where Hikari—his other friend—lives. He had been waiting when was the right time to introduce her to his friends, but hadn't found the perfect timing. And now, it was the perfect time—even though Axel was absent in the team.

"Nice work, Roxas!"

The blond boy turned to face his friend. "You too!" he grinned, wiping the sweat off his chin. He summoned the keyblade away as he regrouped with Xion at the middle. They were in town, but no one was there. The shops were all closed and most of them were still being repaired. He remembered Hikari telling him that there were parts of the town that hasn't been rebuild yet. This was one of them. "You ready to call it a day?" he asked.

Xion nodded her head, giving a smile. "Yeah." She noticed how excited Roxas was since Saix said that they were going to do the mission at Hollow Bastion. Something has been bothering her ever since they stepped out of the dark corridors. She didn't know why, but there was something wrong with the world. It was familiar. "Roxas!" she noticed the black shadows creeping up on them when she raised her chin.

The boy quickly turned around to see the Shadow Heartless jumping at them from the group. He raised his hand to shield himself and Xion from the attack, but someone beat him to it.

"Thunder!"

A burst of lightning electrocuted the Heartless, killing them off in a hit.

Roxas and Xion turned to where the source came from. The reaction from the two Nobodies were different. Xion quickly turned around, pulling her hood up to hide her face from the newcomer. While Roxas acted as if he wasn't bothered with the fact the newcomer just seen them. Sure, they had encountered a few people from different worlds before, but it was best to not have contact with the inhabitants of the world.

"That was a close call, huh?" the newcomer, a girl by the sound of it, said.

Roxas summoned his keyblade away. "Sure was! Thanks!" he walked a few steps forward. He turned sideways, looking at Xion with a smile. "Don't worry, Xion! You can trust her." he reassured.

The black-haired girl raised her gaze, debating whether or not she should greet the girl. She gingerly took a step forward before walking closer to the two. She averted her gaze from the other girl's shoes to see her face. A feeling of familiarity washed over her mind when she saw the girl's face.

Brown hair and a pair of blue eyes.

Xion had seen this girl from somewhere.

Her memories.

The brunette gave a smile to her. "You must be Xion. Nice to meet you!" she stretched out her left hand for a shake.

"Nice… to meet you too…" Xion shook the girl's hand.

Roxas looked down, noticing the brunette's right hand. "What happened to your hand?!" he shouted and made the two girls look at him in surprise at his sudden outburst. His hand twitched. He wanted to reach out and grab her hand, but decided not to. He averted his eyes and stared at the girl's eyes instead. "Is this because of Atlantica? It was my fault…" he sighed out.

"No! No! No! It's not! It's not your fault, Roxas." The brunette quickly moved her hand, shaking her head. She placed her hand on Roxas' shoulder, making the boy look at her. "It wasn't your fault or anyone's fault. It was mine. I was the one who was careless." She said, raising her right hand to show the splint she was using.

"But still…" Roxas looked down.

"No buts!" the brunette patted the blond's shoulder. "Now turn that frown upside down! You're in the presence of two girls here!" she grinned.

Xion couldn't help but smile.

"Now, where were we? Oh yeah!" the brunette thought for a moment and snapped her fingers. "Just call me Hikari and this guy's my mom." She jabbed her thumb over her shoulder, pointing it at Roxas' direction.

Roxas snorted, nudging the girl on her side. "I thought we're over the mom jokes?"

"If you can stop acting like such a mom sometimes, then yeah, the jokes over." Hikari retorted, placing her hand on her hip.

Xion blinked. "Hikari?" She flinched when she felt a sharp pain in her head.

There were cheers going around.

She was seeing someone playing baseball in the field.

It was Hikari.

" _I… wasn't strong enough to protect her. I'm sorry."_

Hikari was looking down, apologizing.

" _We're flying!"_

The scene changed. She was holding hands with the brunette as they float in midair.

"Ah—!"

The brunette stretched out her left arm. "Xi—!" her eyes widened when Xion suddenly lost her balance.

The hooded girl tripped and was about to fell forward, but the brunette quickly stepped in front and caught the Nobody. She held the Nobody's hand tightly as she balanced the girl and herself to prevent them both from falling. With her left hand holding the girl's hand and her right hand placed on the back to steady the girl, she stared worriedly. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Xion!" Roxas helped Xion stand up straight, staring at his friend with concern.

Xion nodded her head. "Y…Yeah… I just felt a little… lightheaded." She gave reassuring smiles to the two blue eyed teens. She took a deep breath and straightened her posture. "Sorry for scaring you two."

Hikari let out a deep sigh. "Maybe I should stop saying my name… You acted the same way Roxas did, only he's was way worse than you." She rubbed the back of her neck, turning her head to look at Roxas. "Maybe I'm cursed or something…" she joked.

The blond snorted in reply.

"Hey, what does that supposed to mean?" Hikari gave him a dirty look.

"Nothing, nothing." Roxas raised his hands up in surrender. "By the way, how did you find out we were here?" he asked.

"People complained that they heard noises coming from here, so we decided to check it out." Hikari answered. She turned her head to the direction of the alley when she seemed to notice something. "I'll meet you guys at the Fountain, kay?" she whispered before turning jogging towards the alley.

Roxas nodded his head. "C'mon, Xion. Let's go." He said as he turned around, taking another route to reach the Fountain area. He basically had been given a map by Hikari to memorize every route around the town. The boy leaded his friend from one alley to the other. "It's not far from here, you can rest when we get there, okay?" he gave a smile.

"Okay…" Xion replied, following the blond.

Not a minute later, the two Nobodies finally reached a clearing. It was spacious with a fountain in the middle. The place was completely empty. Xion remembered this place. It was the place she found Roxas sleeping on the bench around two weeks ago. She stared at the fountain located in the middle as Roxas went over there and sat.

"C'mon." Roxas turned his head to her and patted the empty spot next to him. as Xion sat next to him, he looked forward, staring at the castle in the distance. "I know it's not like Twilight Town. But it's actually pretty nice here." He said.

Xion glanced over to where Roxas was staring. "Yeah…" she agreed. "You and Hikari seemed to be really close. How long have the two of you met?"

Roxas hummed. "To tell you the truth, not long… but I get the feeling that I've known her for more than years…" he admitted. It was true. He didn't understand and he never asked Hikari about the memories he had been having lately, but those memories showed that he grew up with the girl. Though when he sometimes mentioned it, she just said that she never knew him before today. Maybe she was having trouble remembering too? She did tell him that she has a brother, but has forgotten everything about him. "Maybe… when I was still a Somebody… I was her family or something?" he smiled bitterly at the thought.

The black-haired girl stared at him. "I don't know why, but I have the same feeling as you about the her, Roxas." She said quietly and folded her hands on her lap.

Roxas looked down as well.

Ten minutes passed.

The two Nobodies sat in silence.

"Sorry for the wait!" someone stood in front of them, holding something out for them to take. It was Hikari. She was holding out ice cream pops for them. She waved them around when the two Nobodies didn't take the treat. "C'mon! I ran all the way here for them not to melt, you know?"

Roxas was the first one to take the ice cream. "Chocolate again? Don't they have another flavor or something? I'm getting bored of the flavor."

Xion took hers silently.

Hikari straightened her posture. "They do! But chocolate's the best, so it has to be chocolate!" she huffed out to him before taking a seat beside him. She did want to sit beside the hooded girl, but they just met and she didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable. "And hey! You eat sea salt flavored all day and you never get bored of it! Tis the same reason for me!" she sticks her tongue out at him, taking out her own ice cream from a plastic bag.

"Point taken…" Roxas laughed. He looked down to his friend's ice cream. "Xion, aren't you going to try it? It's not as bad as it looks."

Hikari slapped the back of Roxas' head, giving him a glare.

Xion sighed. "What if… I can't summon the keyblade anymore?" she suddenly said out of the blues.

Both Roxas and Hikari exchanged looks.

"It's been awhile since you covered for me, Roxas… I'm glad that you wanted to help out, but I'm positive everyone is beginning to suspect something." Xion continued, finally turning her head to look at her friend. It was too obvious, not matter how hard Axel and Roxas were trying to cover for her. Saix had already begin to suspect her, as well as the other Organization members. She was lucky that one time she was paired with Demyx and she was able to convinced him to split up. "What then?" she pulled her hood down.

Hikari stared at the girl. Her eyes widening when she saw someone she was familiar with underneath the hood.

Kairi.

"What should I do? What if Lord Xemnas finds out? Will I be turned to a Dusk?" Xion stated worriedly, her eyes showing it.

The brunette closed her eyes and blinked a few times.

"They'll never find out. Axel and I will make sure of it." Roxas placed his hand on Xion's shoulder, giving a reassuring squeeze.

The moment Hikari looks at Xion again, the Nobody's appearance changed. A girl with short black hair and a pair of blue eyes could be seen. They were the same shade as Roxas' she noticed. She looked away, placing the ice cream back into the packaging. She thought for a moment before standing up.

"Then use mine." Hikari stated loudly, facing Xion.

Both Roxas and Xion stared confusedly at her.

Hikari raised her left hand and a bright light began to emit from her hand. A keyblade appeared in her grasp. She stared down at the keyblade, a smile on her face before holding it out for Xion to take.

"You can use my keyblade until you get yours back. That way, they won't suspect that you can't wield the keyblade." Hikari kneeled down, standing on her knees to look at Xion's eyes. "Go on! Take it, it doesn't bite!" she grinned, holding out the keyblade.

Xion stared at the purple keyblade and averted her gaze to the girl, a disbelieved look across her face. "Are… you sure?"

Hikari nodded. "A hundred percent positive!" _though, I don't know if Mickey or Master Yen Sid will kill me if they knew about this…_ she finished in her head.

The black-haired girl turned to face Roxas and he gave a nod. She reached her hand out and took the keyblade from the brunette's grasp. She admired the design of the keyblade, moving it around.

"Thank you!" Xion threw herself to hug the brunette, who accepted the embrace.

Hikari laughed. "You're welcome!"

The two girls pulled away from the embrace and Xion summoned away the keyblade. Only for it to reappear in Hikari's grasp.

"Huh… I guess that's understandable." Roxas blinked. The keyblade didn't belonged to Xion as it was passed to Hikari since the beginning. But the keyblade stayed in Xion's grasps as long as she didn't summon it away. "Maybe you should keep it with you at all times." He suggested.

"How about you come here every time before your mission starts? I can summon it for you." Hikari said, giving the keyblade to Xion again.

Xion took the keyblade. "If… it's no trouble." She didn't want to trouble anyone, especially not the person who gave her keyblade to someone she just met.

Hikari smiled. "Not at all. That's what friends are for."

* * *

 _Scrapbook Entry 29 Entered_


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: a new chapter!

Announcement!

I don't know whether I should continue the Scrapbook series or not… it just… seemed a little off I guess? But it is important to the story later on in the sequels. It is important to the story, but I don't think I can manage making an entry for every chapter haha… I'm just been feeling a little down lately and the writer's block and art block are so annoying… So, until I decide whether or not to continue the Scrapbook series in DA, I will put it on hiatus for the time being.

c-guest: thank you so much! We're getting to KH2 haha and I'll think about it haha

Someone: lol so true. And you're right about Hikari being friends with people who has terrible fates… hmmm, I've been thinking that it will have something to do with flowers again? I don't know yet haha. I'm pretty much bad at giving title names… any suggestions? haha

Stormfall: thank you so much!

Draconicflare: awwww thank you so much! I do plan on making one-shots to fill in the gaps, but we'll see haha. Lol! Cloud would probably break the camera again. Me too! Namine deserve to be a real person as much as Roxas and Xion are! Ohhh, now that's dark… aww thank you!

Lulu9814: thank you! Lol 'date' haha.

TheIrishWriter: Not really haha, she set the alarm at 7. She was woken up at 5 by Mickey and Merlin. Lol, Xion has to be strongest girl ever then haha

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 17  
vague

* * *

"Good luck on your mission today, Xion."

A week passed.

Xion smiled. "You too, Hikari."

Everything went by smoothly just as they planned. Every morning, the two girls would meet up with each other by the Fountain Area. Sometimes, Roxas would also join, but that was only twice since he woke up late often. And by the end of each day, Xion would come back to Hollow Bastion and personally give the keyblade back to the original wielder. She was grateful for what the wielder did for her—a Nobody.

"How's everything going?" Hikari asked, crossing her hands behind her neck.

They would always chat for a little bit before parting ways. She had asked this question every day. It wasn't that she was getting out of ideas to start a topic, but she was worried. She didn't know what Xion's original keyblade looked like. The Organization members would probably question why Xion's keyblade looked different. The keyblade didn't change to fit Xion and that's what the brunette was afraid of.

Xion let out a soft sigh. "Luckily, no one seemed to question about it. Either they notice and keep it to themselves or they just don't care."

"It's better like that." Hikari grinned. Suddenly a yawn escaped her lips. She rubbed her eyes, trying to wipe the sleepiness away. It was hard for her for the first two days to wake up, but she managed it anyway. She set the alarm for every ten minutes from six to seven in the morning. She received a lot of complains from Yuffie because of it. "Geez… I should've slept earlier last night…" she sighed.

Xion looked down, guilt in her eyes. "Sorry, Hikari… because of me, you have to wake up early and—,"

"Nah, it's cool, don't worry about it." Hikari waved Xion's apology away, moving her hands in the air. She didn't mind waking up early for the Nobody. "Besides, if I wake up early, I can eat breakfast before Yuffie _and_ get in the bathroom before everybody else!" she flashed a toothy grin.

The Nobody laughed. "It's always about food with you, Hikari."

Hikari placed her hands on her hips. "Hey, if you don't eat, you starve. So, food is important." She stated with her nose held up high. She shifted her weight to one leg and a hand on her hip. "Which reminds me… Did you eat yet? If you still have time, we can go out for a quick breakfast. I know this café that serve the most _awesome_ grilled cheese sandwich ever." She offered, throwing her thumb over her shoulder to the exit of the Fountain area.

"Maybe next time," Xion politely declined. "Everyone is probably in the Grey Area by now." She looked down to the keyblade, her grip on the handle tightening a little.

The brunette nodded her head. "Sure, some other time then…" she had expected Xion's reply. She took a step closer and placed a hand on her shoulder, making the Nobody looked at her. "Don't worry, Xi… your keyblade will come back. I just know it. At the meantime, just use my keyblade. I don't mind at all." She gave a reassuring grin.

Xion sighed. "What if you need it?"

"Don't worry. I can still use the rod to fight, besides… I'm not going to the restoration site for a while." Hikari let her hands fall to her sides.

Her right hand was completely healed, but she decided to let others think that it hasn't. Not just because she can skip her daily chores, it was to cover for her missing keyblade. Leon didn't let her go to help out to the restoration site, and for that reason she was free in the morning. And Merlin decided to get back to their regular training time, morning and night. In order to avoid being found out that she's lending her keyblade, she decided to fake her healed injury.

"And it's gonna take some time for this to heal." She raised her right hand covered in bandages.

"But how much longer can you keep it up?" Xion asked, a frown on her lips.

"Long enough until you can get your keyblade back." Hikari answered confidently. She didn't know when Xion would get her keyblade back and she didn't know how long she could hide the fact that she has been lending her keyblade to the opposite group. But one thing's for sure, no matter how everything would turn out, she would help her friend. "I can handle it, so don't worry about me, okay?" she smiled.

Xion slowly nodded her head. "Thanks, Hikari…"

"Now, go on and kick some Heartless butt!" Hikari pumped her fist up encouragingly. She slung her arm over Xion's shoulder, giving a side hug. "Show them what you're made of! Show them _these_!" she raised her left arm and flexed, showing her muscles off.

"Pffft!" The black-haired girl laughed, her hand covering her mouth to prevent an even louder laugh to come out. The brunette took a step back and kept flexing her arms, doing a few funny poses. The Nobody turned her head to look at the shorter girl. "There's not much to look at though." She giggled when she saw the expression across Hikari's face.

"W—What?!"

Xion continued laughing.

Hikari slumped her shoulders before straightening her posture, a grin on her face. She was glad that she could bring a smile up to Xion's face.

"Well, I guess I better be going." The Nobody turned her body sideways, stretching her left arm out to summon a dark corridor. She turned to look at the girl and gave one last smile before leaving. "I'll see you later, Hikari." she said her goodbye and stepped into the portal.

"See you later." Hikari nodded her head, waving her hand goodbye.

Xion gave one last smile and waved her hand in reply before the portal closed.

The Nobody stared at the spot where the portal closed. She wanted to spend more time with the brunette. There was just so much that she wanted to ask, but didn't have the time to. Sure, they meet up afterwards when missions were over, but they had to cut their visit short since both Nobodies don't want the rest of the Organization to find out their secret. Mostly Saix, who questioned their absences in the morning. Though both Nobodies trust their friend—Axel—they somehow can't confess to him about meeting up with Hikari daily.

The black-haired girl let out a sigh before turning around on her heels to head back to the direction of the Castle That Never Was. Her footsteps echoed in the never-ending space of the Betwixt and Between. It was a short walk to reach the portal on the other side. She stepped out of the portal and back into her room. She closed the portal behind her and just when she was about to walk out, a knock was heard from the door.

"Y—Yes?" Xion jumped a little. She wasn't expecting any visitors. No one hardly ever visited her in her own room.

"Xion, you ready?" a familiar voice was heard from the opposite side.

The Nobody let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah." She replied and opened the door. It slides open with a hiss and a blond was waiting right in front of her door. "Morning, Roxas." She greeted, the keyblade in hand.

Roxas nodded his head. "Morning." his eyes trailed to look at the keyblade in Xion's hands. He looked away, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry I overslept… _again_." He apologized.

"Don't worry about it, sleepyhead." Xion giggled.

Roxas began walking. "Everyone's already in the Grey Area. Saix told me to come and get you." He said, sighing.

"Oh…" Xion's grip on the keyblade tightened.

 _Did they figure it out already?_

The two Nobodies made their way towards the Grey Area. It wasn't long until they reached the lounge area. The two stopped right at the entrance. Something felt different to them. The air was thick and Demyx's usual melody from his sitar was missing.

Roxas scanned the room. Something felt a little off in the atmosphere after he came back. He spotted his red-headed friend standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows. The red-head had his eyes closed and his arms crossed as the blue-haired Nobody spoke to him. The other Nobodies were also found around the Grey Area. Demyx, Xaldin and Luxord were seen lounging on the left side of the room. Though what surprised him the most was the Nobody sitting on the chair of the right side of the room.

The Superior.

 _Xemnas._

It was an unusual sight to see the big boss in the Grey Area rather than the Altar of Naught.

He was either there or the Round Room.

Never once did Roxas saw the big boss far from those two places.

"Well—look who decided to show up! The poppet!" There was sarcasm in that tone. Roxas turned to face the source. Xigbar was the only Nobody who adds that kind of sarcasm to his speech. The scarred Nobody laid on the sofa, taking the whole space for himself. He had his arms crossed behind his neck to use as a pillow while his feet were propped up on the other armrest of the sofa. Though they were in the presence of their supreme leader, the eye-patched man doesn't seem to care. "Must've been a really good dream. That mullet sitar strumming idiot was here even before you." he teased, jabbing his thumb to the direction of said Nobody.

Demyx turned in his seat. "HEY! I'm offended…" he slumped his shoulders down, a frown on his lips.

Xigbar easily waved the man off. "Anyway—," he pushed himself to a sitting position and turned in his seat to look at the two keyblade wielders in the room. "It's really rare to see all of us here, huh? The big boss is even here to chillax!" he chuckled, spreading his arms our to rest on the back of the sofa.

Xemnas simply closed his eyes, not replying to Xigbar's comment.

"Huh? Oh yeah… I guess…" Roxas' eyes scanned the room, finally noticing that the whole Organization members were gathered in the same room other than the Altar. The Round Room doesn't actually count since they never had a gathering in there for quite a while. The last time they used the Round Room was when Xion is introduced to the Organization.

"Hey, you're right!" Demyx also looked around, a grin on his face. "And Saix hasn't given us missions yet! Could it be an announcement for a vacation—!"

"Don't be foolish." Saix quickly cuts in and Demyx whined in respond to which the man ignored. He took a few steps forward and reached his hand out, summoning a dark corridor. "Demyx, you are working with Axel today. Recon at Beast's Castle." He instructed, simple and clear.

Demyx let out another whine before Axel walked over. "C'mon, water boy. The sooner we finish our mission, the faster you can play your music." He said as the mullet-haired man dragged his feet to reach the portal. "See you two later." The redhead gave a two-finger salute to the two young members of the Organization.

Saix turned to face the two keyblade wielders. "Roxas, today you're with Xaldin. Heart collecting at Agrabah." He ordered and Roxas nodded his head as the man with the dreadlocks stood up from his seat. Since Xion has been borrowing Hikari's keyblade for her missions, Axel didn't have to be around to insist that Xion has a mission together with Roxas or a solo one. Though, Axel did question where she got the keyblade from. The two just answered she's using a made-up one. "Xion… you're with Luxord. Heart collecting at Twilight Town." He said.

"I believe this is our first time working as a team." Luxord stood up, joining the circle between the two keyblade wielders and the dreadlock headed man.

Xion nodded. "Yeah…"

"Good luck, Xion. Luxord." Roxas gave a smile to the black-haired girl before stepping into the portal, following after Xaldin—who left him to go inside first.

"Shall we take our leave as well?" Luxord directed his hand to the portal, insisting that Xion went inside first.

The girl nodded her head.

"Oh! Poppet! I forgot to tell you something all this time." Xigbar's voice stopped Xion from going through the portal. She turned her gaze over her shoulder, staring at the eyepatch man with a curious look. Though there was something in the back of her mind that kept on saying to just ignore the man and get inside the portal as soon as possible, she waited for him to continue.

"That's a really nice keyblade you got there." Xigbar grinned, pointing at the keyblade in Xion's hands.

The black-haired girl almost instantly froze from shock. She expected them to find out that the keyblade was completely different from the original, but the gaze Xigbar was giving her was just too creepy beyond reasons. There was a glint behind it, silently saying that he had seen the keyblade before. Of course, the grin plastered on his face didn't help ease the girl's panic.

"O—Oh, thanks…" Xion lowered the keyblade, trying to hide it from the other's views.

"It reminds me of someone."

Xion gulped.

A smirk was seen on the Nobody's lips.

"Good luck on your mission, _Poppet_."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Shiiing_

 _Whoosh_

 _Clank_

Riku straightened his posture as he stood in the middle of evaporating Heartless. He lowered his keyblade before summoning it away. The teen had just finished the given task from DiZ. Though, it was just a simple patrol, he didn't know the reason behind it. The Nobodies came to Twilight Town all the time to take out the Heartless, so he doesn't really see the point in taking care of the Heartless when the Organization is already taking care of that infestation problem.

The numbers of Heartless appearing in Twilight Town has increased. In order to help keep the Heartless away from the town and mostly the Old Mansion, he was sometimes ordered to take care of the problem. It was a risky task. Though the Organization frequently came to the world, they didn't actually finish the job well. There have been a few close calls when the Heartless slipped passed the wall and almost infiltrated the Old Mansion, due to the Organization members no taking their job well. There was still a number of Heartless roaming around the world and it's his job to finish what's left behind.

In other times, he was given the task to collect certain items for DiZ. He didn't know what was the meaning behind the scavenger hunt, but he did it anyway for the sake of the memory restoration program to go faster.

"Y—You guys! Wait up!"

The silver-haired teen turned his head to the source. Three teenagers were seen running across the street. Two of the group stopped to wait for their third member to catch up to them.

"Have—you guys ever—heard of waiting?" the chubby one panted out, his hands on his knees for support as he tried to catch his breath.

They were completely unaware of the presence of the man in black.

The tallest of the three crossed his arms. "C'mon, Pence! Today's the first day showing of _Soldier Battles II_! We have to get there before Seifer!" he grinned, shoving his hands inside his pockets. "Who knows what kind of spoilers he'll give tomorrow if we don't watch it today." He snorted, a sour look on his face as he mentioned the name.

The girl in the group smiled. "Well, we still have two hours before the movie starts. We can take our time getting to the theater." She shifted the schoolbag on her shoulder to a comfortable position.

" _Thank you_ , Olette." Pence gave a look of relief to the girl before turning to face his other friend, his hand on his hips as he gave a small frown. " _See_ , Hayner? Olette understands me!" he huffed out.

Hayner rolled his eyes. "I bet there's already a line in front of the theater. Either way, it's best if we just go there earlier. I don't want to go there and line up behind Seifer—please don't let me jinx myself." He face-palmed when he realized there was a possibility that they would see Seifer and his group of friends in the theater.

Olette giggled. "Careful, that just might happen."

"Olette, for the love of Captain Light, _please_ don't jinx us even more." Hayner whined, slumping his shoulders.

Olette shook her head, a smile on her face. "Well, then, should we keep going?" she shifted her weight to one leg, waiting for the two boys to walk.

The two boys nodded and the three friends left the market area.

"Hmph," Riku felt the corner of his lips twitched up to a half-smile. _'Movies, huh? It's been a while since I watched a movie.'_ he thought, looking at the direction where the teens had run off to.

Back before Destiny Island was swallowed by Darkness, he remembered the days when he and his group of friends would just hang around the main plaza and watch movies after school. He would mostly watch movies with Kairi, Hikari and the boy. The last time he watched a movie with his friends was around two weeks before the storm. It was hard to believe that things escalated so quickly in the span of two weeks.

' _Wonder what Hikari's been doing all week.'_ Riku thought to himself as he turned around to walk towards the hole on the wall. It had been a week since Hikari visited Twilight Town and he hadn't visited Hollow Bastion as often as he promised. _'Maybe I should pay her a visit… it's been awhile…'_ He stopped, thinking to give Hollow Bastion a visit before he returned to the Old Mansion.

The silver-haired teen turned his head when he heard a noise. He quickly hid behind a few wooden crates. He leaned his head a bit forward, peeking from the side. Two Organization members were seen chasing an Emblem Heartless down the tram.

' _That was a close call,'_ Riku sighed out quietly. He squinted his eyes when he noticed something was amiss from the two Organization members. There was nothing wrong with the first Organization member, but the second one… _'Wait—?!'_ his eyes widened in realization when he finally noticed the odd feeling he has.

"That's—!" he quickly stopped himself to prevent himself from being found out.

 _Hikari's keyblade._

Why was the Starseeker with those Nobodies when it belonged to Hikari?

"Hollow Bastion it is."

Riku opened a portal and quickly stepped in.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"What? Are you serious?" Hikari stared at her friend in disbelief.

It was around four in the afternoon when she found both Roxas and Xion in the Fountain Area. During the morning, the brunette had been helping Aerith with work in town. While later, during the day, she has been helping Scrooge with his secret sea-salt ice cream recipe—to which till this day, still taste horrible. By the afternoon, she didn't expect both Roxas and Xion to just drop the news like that. It has been a pretty good day, but what the two Nobodies told her was not really good news.

Xion nodded her head. "Yeah… it's for the best."

Hikari stared at the keyblade in her hands. "Why? I don't mind waking up in the morning for you." She gave the girl a frown. She was a little offended that Xion doesn't believe her. She kept saying that it was okay for her to keep lending her keyblade to the Nobody, but Xion has to be reminded of it. "The others won't know that you can't use the keyblade if you keep using the Starseeker." She reasoned.

The black-haired girl let out a soft sigh. "That's… the problem." She said.

"Problem?" Roxas echoed. He too—was confused on why Xion suddenly announced that she won't be borrowing Hikari's keyblade anymore starting tomorrow. "Did something happen when I wasn't around?" he asked in concern.

Xion folded her hands in front of her chest. "Xigbar… knew who the real wielder is…" she closed her eyes, frowning.

Roxas' eyes widened. "What?!" he turned his head to look at the brunette standing beside him.

"Eh? No way! I've never even met him in my entire life!" Hikari denied, shaking her head no. She never met anyone with the name of Xigbar in her entire life. Sure, at some point, she had met Vexen and Lea at some point during her visit to Radiant Garden with Ventus. She doubts that she could summon any keyblade during her childhood. She just inherited the keyblade a few months back through Mickey. "Wait a minute…" she trailed off.

"Xigbar could be referring to your master, Hikari…" Roxas said, piecing the pieces together.

Xion nodded. "I don't want to get you or your master in trouble with the Organization, Hikari…" she raised her gaze, staring worriedly at the brunette.

The keyblade wielder stared at the keyblade in her hand. It did made sense if Mickey had met Xigbar back in the past. The brunette summoned the keyblade away and took a deep breath before tilting her chin up to look at Xion with a smile on her face.

"Well! It's too late to cover it now, huh?" Hikari placed a hand on her hip. The smile on her face surprised both Xion and Roxas. How could the girl be not worried about the Organization finding out about her? She kept the smile on her lips. "Even if you stopped using the Starseeker now, it would just be the same, right? I think they would even be more suspicious if you stopped using it the next day after Xigbar mentions it." She reasoned.

Roxas blinked. "You're right about that one…" he crossed his arms.

Xion frowned, giving a sad look. "But if I keep on using it, they might ask me where I got it… I don't want them to know about you."

"Just tell 'em that your keyblade sometimes changes shape according to what you're thinking." Hikari grinned, placing her hand on Xion's shoulder, giving a reassuring pat. All of the Organization members beside Roxas and Xion aren't keyblade wielders and even the two sole keyblade wielders don't understand the extent of what the keyblade could do. They could just make things up and everyone will buy it. "Tell 'em that you're thinking of stars at the moment. Yeah… Stars!" she wrapped her arm around Xion's shoulders.

"Stars? That's the best that you could think of?" Roxas snorted at Hikari's idea.

Hikari crossed her arms, giving him a dirty look. "Uh—excuse me? Who's doing all the thinking here?" she said sarcastically. She meant it in a playful and teasing way. The two Nobodies knew that the brunette never meant any of her teasing words. "Okay then, _Mr. Smarty Pants_ , let's hear yours." She gave a smug look.

Roxas hummed, a hand on his chin. "How about… it's because you're thinking about other worlds? The stars are worlds, right? You can say that you're seeking for a heart across the worlds. That's why it took shape as a star-thingy."

"That sounded better than just stars." Xion agreed jokingly, a giggle escape her lips.

"X—Xion!" Hikari turned to Xion with a baffled look. The two Nobodies let out a laugh and the brunette glanced at the two with a pout before breaking into a laugh as well. "Okay, okay, I guess it's a _bit_ better than just stars." She admitted, grinning widely.

Roxas smirked. "A bit?"

"Anyway—," Hikari quickly changed the topic. "If you're worried about the other Organization members finding out, just request another mission with Roxas tomorrow. You've been doing your missions with the others for the past week, so I guess it's okay to have a mission with Roxas again." She explained.

"…another good point." Roxas smiled.

"Duh."

Xion giggled. "Thanks… What would I do without you guys?" she turned her gaze to look at Hikari and then Roxas.

Hikari grinned and wrapped her other arm around Roxas' shoulders, pulling him down a little. "Well, what can I say? Us keyblade wielders have to stick together!" she smiled.

Roxas took a step back out of the hug. "Well, I guess it's time for us to go." He announced.

"Awwww… already?" Hikari whined childishly. She straightened up and gave the two a grin. "I'll be waiting tomorrow." She said.

"Same time?"

"Same time."

Hikari watched as the portal closed. It was quiet now, without the two Nobodies. The past visits had been fairly short and it saddened her that she can't talk to them like she used too. With the fear of the Organization's constant watch over Xion's new keyblade, they had to cut it short. She didn't know why the two haven't introduced her to Axel yet. If they did, the redhead could've made things a lot easier on their side, but she decided to wait until they decided to introduce Axel themselves.

"Hikari."

The brunette almost jumped at the sudden voice in the midst of silence.

"Riku!" the brunette sighed in relieve when she saw the familiar silver-haired teen standing a few feet behind her. "It's about time you visit." She said jokingly, arms crossed.

"Perfect timing too." Riku said, the usual snarky and playful tone was no longer there. The brunette stared at her friend with now a serious look. There has to be something that went wrong. She grew up together with him. She would know something went wrong with just one look and a word. "Why are you lending your keyblade to the Nobody?" he asked straightly to the point.

Hikari cringed. "…you heard?" she sighed out, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

Riku nodded his head. "Why?"

"Roxas and Xion are my friends." Hikari answered. There was no point in lying to her childhood friend. "They needed help, so… I offered my help."

Riku learned his mistake last time he corrected Hikari of her mistake. "Did you know how dangerous that is? From what I heard, those Nobodies are going to be looking for you too." He said sternly, but he wasn't yelling straight at the girl's face like last time. The silver-haired teen approached the brunette closer when she looked away in guilt, a habit of hers when she knew what she did was wrong. "Listen, Hikari… I know you're just trying to help, but please, _please for the love of_ —think twice before you do things, alright?" he placed his hand on the girl's shoulder.

Hikari stared at his hand before nodding her head slowly. "Okay…."

"Good. From now on, I want you to stop seeing those Nobodies."

"What?! N—No! I can't do that! Roxas and Xion are my _friends_ too!" Hikari quickly denied, taking a few steps back to look at her friend.

"No matter if they're your friends or not, they're a part of the Organization, Hikari." Riku said calmly, something that was unusual for the girl to hear. When it comes to something like this, the two of them would be on each other's throats like cats and dogs. "Do you remember what they did to us in Castle Oblivion? To Namine?" he continued.

Hikari looked down. "But Roxas and Xion didn't do those things…"

Riku stayed quiet.

There was a moment of silence between the two friends.

"Riku… Do you trust me?" Hikari suddenly asked.

The silver-haired teen nodded his head. "Of course." He immediately replied.

Hikari placed her hand over her heart. "Then please trust me on this."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _The next day_

"Good luck on your mission today, guys."

"Thanks… but I think we'll need it more tomorrow."

Hikari blinked, staring at the two Nobodies with a raised eyebrow. "Something happened?"

Xion sighed. "Axel managed to convinced Saix that we can work together again today, but this is the last time _ever_." She emphasized.

The brunette frowned before her frown turned to an encouraging smile. "Then today's going to be the day you can summon your keyblade again!" she said, patting the Nobody's shoulder reassuringly. "C'mon, think positive guys! If you guys think positive, then good things will happen, you know?" she laughed.

Roxas nodded his head in agreement. "You're right. We can do this, Xion." He turned to face the black-haired girl, the same encouraging smile Hikari gave them was plastered on his lips.

After her encounter with Riku yesterday, she had been thinking. What Riku said to her was true. It was dangerous of her to give her keyblade to someone she just met, an Organization member at that too. But she didn't regret it one bit. The boy promised to her that he won't tell Mickey or Yen Sid of her decision, but he did _sternly_ advise her to not do it again.

Xion glanced over to Roxas and Hikari, smiling at their attempt to cheer her up. "Thanks guys."

"Now go on and kick some Heartless butt!" Hikari pumped her fist up.

Roxas laughed. "We will." He summoned a dark corridor leading to Beast's Castle and stepped inside, followed by Xion. "We'll see you later, Hikari." he said before the portal closed.

Hikari nodded.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"How's your hand today, my dear?"

Hikari stopped what she was doing and raised her right hand. "It's okay. A bit stiff, but I'll manage." She replied, placing the tool down to approach the wizard. "Is there something you want me to do?" she asked.

Aerith and Cloud went to the castle with the rest of the committee except Cid, Merlin and herself. The three stayed behind in Merlin's house to monitor the town. Merlin had been going through his books, looking for a certain specific book all morning. Hikari had been helping Cid with his machine. It was the next step for the Claymore project. They had to build a prototype model first before duplicating everything. The brunette has to admit. Being an inventor is a hard job. The moment she read over the blueprint and where to put this and that, she was already dizzy. No wonder, everyone in her class choose the baking soda volcano for their science fair project. Everyone got a solid B+ for that, the highest she could probably get in science.

Merlin laughed as he held a thick book in his hand. "I've finally found it!"

Hikari stared at the book with distaste. "You're not gonna make me read that, now are you?" she asked, pointing her finger accusingly at the thick book. "That's gonna take me like…three years to finish!" she exaggerated.

Cid let out a snort, turning in his swivel chair. "Now you're just exaggerating, kid. You finished your first-grade science book in one semester, I'm pretty sure it's not going take you that long to read that book." He smirked, pointing the screwdriver in his hand at the girl.

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Haha," she gave a dry laugh.

"Now, come on, my dear! Give this book a try!" Merlin handed the book to the girl, who took it. She stared at the cover and her interest immediately vanished. It was completely blank. There wasn't any title or anything, just plain white. "You'll love it I'm sure!" he smiled.

Hikari gave an unsure laugh. "No offense, Merlin, but… there's nothing on this cover." She said, holding up the book. She turned around to show the black-covered book to Cid—who in return shrugged his shoulder, shaking his head that he doesn't know.

"My dear, have you heard of the saying to not judge a book by its' cover?" Merlin asked, taking the book back to place it on top of a table.

"A lot…" Hikari answered.

"Well, you see, my dear, do you remember? This is the book that I was talking about when we first met." Merlin began as he stared at the book before turning his attention to his young apprentice. At the mention of the time they first met, Hikari began to think back about the discussion she has with Merlin about the blank-covered book.

"Oh! I remember now! That's the book that you said a world is in it!" Hikari snapped her fingers when she finally remembered about the book.

"Correct!" Merlin nodded his head. "Tis a magical book that contains a world! The pages were once torn and scattered across the worlds… but somehow, the pages returned, magical isn't it?" he explained, giving a short laugh.

Hikari nodded. "Yeah…"

"Go ahead, my dear! Open the book!" Merlin encouraged, ushering the girl to come closer to the book.

Just when Hikari reached her hand out to grab the book, the lock sudden unclipped itself and a blinding light filled the room.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The brunette slowly opened her eyes. She rubbed her eyes, as they sting from the brightness before. She blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the new lighting.

"Hey, Merlin, what was—!?" Hikari paused when she noticed that she wasn't in Merlin's house anymore. She was standing in the middle of a path, surrounded by lush green trees and plants alike. She looked around confusedly. The last time she checked, Hollow Bastion was lacking trees and all things green. She thought for a moment, thinking that the Star Shard might've acted up again, but she remembered that she left the Star Shard in her room. "Wait… Could it be that I'm inside the book?!" she shouted in realization as she glanced around.

The girl looked up to the sky, staring at the blue skies with fluffy white clouds. Everything looked so cartoonish and it excites her more to know that she's inside of a book. Now if only story books were like this, now that would get her to read more books.

Hikari decided to walk forward, taking the path in front of her. "This is so cool…" she grinned, her eyes gleaming with excitement. The atmosphere of the world inside the book was also really calming. Everything looked calm to her in the current world. There were no signs of Heartless around, which was good. Her eyes spotted a house inside a tree not far from her, she quickly ran over towards where the house is and slowed down to a walk when she was near the small house.

"Think, think, think…"

A small golden-furred rotund bear wearing a small red shirt was seen sitting on a log. He kept mumbling to himself, tapping his temple a continuously as a troubled look seemed to adored his round face.

Hikari approached the bear. She didn't want to scare the bear. He was small compared to her.

"What'cha doing there?" Hikari decided to ask, she heard the bear muttered a few 'thinks' under his breath. She was positive that the bear could talk, just like all the other animals she met of her journey. She bends down a little, her hands on her knees.

"Nothing, just thinking…" the bear replied, turning in his seat to look at Hikari. The small bear tilted his head, staring at Hikari. "Oh, hello there, stranger, I believe that we haven't met yet." He gave a short laugh.

The brunette grinned. "The name's Hikari." she offered her hand out for the bear to take.

"Oh yes, I'm Winnie the Pooh. Pooh for short." The bear giggled, taking Hikari's hand in his round-shaped hands. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Hikari."

"Nice to meet you too, Pooh." Hikari smiled. "Now what seems to be the problem, lil' guy? Maybe I can help you out?" she offered her help, sitting down beside the bear on the log.

"Oh, you would? That's wonderful!" Pooh laughed. He turned to look at his feet as he kicks back and forth a few times. "You see… I seem to have run out of hunny and my tummy's rumbling." He sighed softly and patted his round stomach as a growl was heard.

Hikari blinked. "Hunny? You mean honey?" she corrected the bear's spelling.

"Yes, you see… I ate all of the hunny…" The bear nodded and raised an empty pot of 'hunny' painted on the pot. He opened the lid and raised the pot up to his eye level. He peeked inside with one eye as he smacked his lips together. He sighed in disappointment as there wasn't a single drop of hunny inside the pot. "And now, they seemed to have run out." He placed the pot on his lap.

Hikari stared at the direction of where she came from. "Well, maybe we can go to a store and buy more of this… hunny?" maybe it was just the world's spelling of honey, but pooh someone got her to say hunny as well.

"A store? What is this store that you speak of?" Pooh asked.

The brunette cleared her throat. "Okay… well, there seemed to be no hunny store… Where do you usually get your hunny, Pooh?" she stood up and leaned down to ask the bear.

"Well, Piglet always have a pot of hunny with him." Pooh said.

"Let's go find Piglet then!" Hikari straightened her posture and waited for Pooh to stand up. The bear jumped off the log and wobbled a few times. The girl placed her hand behind the bear's back and helped him gain his balance back.

"Why, thank you, Hikari!" Pooh thanked, looking up to the taller girl—who nodded in return. "Now, let's go to Piglet's house." He began to walk forward and Hikari followed him in a slower pace.

The brunette looked down when she felt a tug on her left hand. The small bear was holding her hand and it was the cutest thing. She smiled, deciding to let the bear hold her hand as they walked together to Piglet's house. Not five minutes later, another tree house was seen. It was more like a three with a door and a small balcony compared to Pooh's treehouse.

"Piglet~!" Pooh called out a few times, cupping his mouth. A minute passed and there wasn't any answer from his friend. "Piglet, are you home?" he knocked on the door twice, peeking into the keyhole.

Hikari hummed. "I don't think your friend's home, Pooh."

"Perhaps…"

"P—P—Pooh!"

The brunette raised an eyebrow when she heard a faint voice calling for the bear. She was sure that it wasn't her. The girl looked around, trying to look for the source and when she didn't find anything she turned to look back at the bear knocking at the door.

"Piglet~"

"O—O-Over here." The faint voice returned.

This time it was a little louder.

Hikari glanced up to the tree and her eyes widened when she spotted a small pig hanging on a string of a red balloon.

"What are you doing up there, Piglet?" Pooh tilted his head, asking confusedly.

"I—I was j-just getting s-some cleaning done and—," the wind blew a little and the balloon began to fly to a higher branch before being caught between the leaves. "H—Help!" he said in a soft voice.

Hikari instantly panicked. "H—Hang on, okay?!" she quickly climbed up the tree. It was a good thing that her hand has already healed, or else climbing the tree to rescue the little pig would be impossible. She pulled herself up to the branch and continued to climb up until she reached when the piglet is. "Hey there lil' guy, I'm here to rescue you!" she grinned.

"W—Who are you?"

"I'm Hikari, Pooh's friend." Hikari replied as she grabbed the Piglet from hanging helplessly on the balloon's string. With her other hand, she grabbed the balloon, trying it loosely around her wrist. She slowly climbed down the tree with the piglet in her arm. When she reached the last branch, she jumped down and landed safely on the ground with a soft thud. She let the small piglet down and sat on the ground. "There you go, lil' guy." She said.

Piglet fidgeted under the brunette's stare. "T—Thank you." He thanked quietly, but Hikari heard it. "I—I'm Piglet. It—it's nice to meet you, Hikari."

"Are you alright, Piglet?" Pooh asked, standing behind the small pig.

The pink pig turned to face his friend. "O—Oh yes, Pooh, I'm fine, thank you for asking." He smiled. "Is there something you need?"

As if on cue, Pooh's stomach growled. "We're looking for some hunny. Do you have some hunny, Piglet?" he patted his stomach a few times.

Piglet shook his head. "Sorry, Pooh… but I also ran out of hunny."

"It's okay, Piglet… maybe we can ask Rabbit for some hunny." Pooh giggled and then turned to Hikari, "Let's go, Hikari, Piglet."

Hikari stood up and walked beside the pooh bear.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Fuuuh…"

After what seemed like hours, they finally made it to the Hunny tree. They had been going around the forest and asked everyone, and she means _everyone_ in the 100 Acre Woods for hunny. There weren't many residents living in the forest. Just an owl, a tiger, a rabbit, a donkey, a gopher and a kangaroo with her little joey, of course, there are Piglet and Pooh too. When they had been visiting the house one by one, she had been helping with their own problems too. She had been helping them with gardening, finding a lost joey, playing Pooh stick with said joey, finding the donkey's lost tail and then helping an owl find a replacement for his doorbell since he was the one who used the donkey's tail for it. She did all of that before finally reaching the Hunny tree.

"So, this is where you get all of your hunny from?" Hikari asked, staring at the tree. She should've expected that they all get their hunny from a hunny tree swarming with bees.

"Yup!" Tigger popped the p as he jumped on his tail. "Tis an adventure every day to get hunny!" he laughed.

Hikari gave a short laugh. "You don't say…" she hated bees with a passion, but she wanted to help the pooh bear to get his hunny, so she has to bear with it. "How about we get more hunny since it's a difficult task? So, you guys won't have to come here often?" she asked.

"That's a splendid idea!" Pooh rubbed his stomach.

"Did you guys bring the pots?" Hikari asked as she glanced around the group. She knew that they didn't because of their empty hands, but decided to ask anyway. "Let's go back and get some first." She said as she turned to the direction where they came.

"That won't be necessary, Hikari!" Tigger jumped up to Hikari's eye level. He jumped over to Pooh and wrapped his arm around the bear's shoulders. "Pooh bear here keeps a secret stash of empty pots here, just in case he wanted to get some hunny!"

"That's right." Pooh smiled as he walked over towards a tree. He pushed aside a bush and pots were seen hidden inside the tree. Hikari helped the bear took out a few of the pots and lined them up. "That should be enough, I think?" he tapped his temple a few times.

"I—I made some disguises to wear." Hikari turned to the small piglet. He was holding up a headband—which was just strings with a few twigs and leaves tied on it. The brunette kneeled down and took the headband and stared at it. "We can also use these to hide ourselves!" he held out a branch with a bundle of leaves.

"Thanks, Piglet Ol' Pal!" Tigger gladly took the disguises and placed them on, bouncing happily on his springy tail.

"Why, thank you, Piglet." Pooh smiled.

Hikari placed on the headband and held out the branch. "Thanks, Piglet." She wore them anyway, even if it didn't help covering her up when she wants to hide from the bees. "Now, let's go get your hunny!" she said with a grin.

The brunette leaded the group towards the tree cautiously. She didn't want to alert the bees that they were going to steal their hunny. The bees were buzzy all over the tree, but they were mostly around the upper part of the tree where their hive is. The girl decided to just get the hunny from the lowest part of the tree. She peeked her inside the hole and smile when she saw the yellow goodness the bear likes.

She turned to face Piglet and pointed her finger inside the hole. The piglet nodded his head and began to scoop up the hunny into the pot, taking his time filling up the pots. She was too busy looking at Piglet that she didn't notice Pooh was already at the top of the tree. A tap to her shoulder made her turn her attention to the tiger.

Tigger pointed his finger at the top of the tree.

"P—Pooh?!" Hikari shouted in a low voice, surprised to find the bear at the top of the tree. The bear had half of his upper body inside the hole, probably eating the hunny inside, but he was so close to the hive that it scared the brunette just by looking at him. "Hang on, I'm coming there!" she said.

Tigger jumped up and down. "If you want to reach the top, you have to bounce, bounce, bounce! Hoo hoo hoo!" he repeated, jumping from one branch to another in a nick of time, he was already at the top beside the pooh bear.

Hikari decided to just climbed up the tree slowly and quietly since if it was in her case, the whole tree would shake. Halfway up to where Pooh and Tigger is, she could already hear the buzzing bees more louder and louder. She glanced up and her eyes widened. She reached her hand out and caught both Tigger and Pooh in time as they fell from the tree.

"Hoo hoo hoo! Nice catch there, kiddo!" Tigger laughed.

The brunette gave a sigh of relief. "Thanks."

"Now, that was delicious!" Pooh giggled, his whole face covered in hunny. As Hikari slowly climbed down the tree, his stomach growled. "But I'm still hungry…" he sighed, patting his stomach.

"Don't worry, Pooh. Piglet's down there collecting hunny." Hikari replied. Her eyes kept on staring at the bees flying around them. She squinted her eyes as her face scrunched up in disgust whenever one of the bees gets too close to her liking. She wasn't fond of the black and yellow striped insects. She wasn't fond of anything that has six and more legs—more specifically, bugs. "Eeeek!" she let out a loud shriek as one got too close to her face.

On instinct, Hikari released her hold on the branch, making her, Tigger and Pooh fall from the branch they were hanging. They were lucky that they were only a branch away from the ground. Hikari landed first on the ground with Pooh landing on top of her a few seconds later. Tigger on the other hand was lucky to have a springy tail. He landed on his tail, bouncing a few times before coming to a stop.

"Hoo hoo hoo!"

"Ugh…" Hikari sat up and rubbed her bottom. Pooh sat on her lap before standing up to help the girl up to her feet. "I hate bees…" she sighed out.

"Are you alright, Hikari?" Pooh asked.

Hikari smiled at the bear. "Yeah, I'm good." She went over to where Piglet is and helped the pig move the pots that were filled away from the hole. "Great job, Piglet!" she praised.

"T—thank you, Hikari." Piglet fidgeted from the compliment.

Hikari took two from the ground and both Tigger and Pooh took one each.

The four decided to head to the meadow to relax.

It was a wide-open space in the middle of the forest. The grass was soft and green as the soft cool breeze blew. The brunette quickly laid down on the grass after she placed the hunny pots down. She crossed her hands behind her head as she stared at the blue sky with fluffy clouds. It had been awhile since she could relax and just go cloud-watching.

"This is the life!" Tigger followed the girl and laid down, his hands behind his head.

Hikari smiled. "You said it."

"Mmmm, yes," Pooh nodded his head in agreement as he munched on the handful of hunny he scooped up with his bare hands.

The brunette sat up and laughed. "Pooh…" it hadn't been a day and he had already finished the first pot of hunny that they collected. All of the sudden, her hand glowed brightly and a familiar keyblade appeared in her hand. "What?" she stared at the keyblade with a surprised look.

"What'cha got there, buddy?" Tigger asked, looking at the keyblade.

"It's… the Starseeker… Why did it…" Hikari's thoughts trailed over to Xion. Worry began to fill her mind when she realized that something bad might've happened to her friend. The only thing that would make the keyblade reappear in the wielder's hand were that Xion accidentally summoned it away or the Nobody is actually far away from the keyblade. She doubts the first one, but the second. "Xion…" she mumbled.

"Is he your friend?" Pooh asked, tilting his head.

"She… And yeah, she is. I'm worried about her…" Hikari corrected, turning to face the bear. "This keyblade is supposed to be with her, but… I guess something happened that made the keyblade come back to me." She said, staring at the keyblade again.

"Oh dear…" Piglet gave a worried look.

"She's with a friend, but…" Hikari sighed.

"Then what are you worrying about? That friend of hers can help her out!" Tigger laughed, leaning against Hikari's head.

Hikari smiled at the thought of Roxas. "You're right… thanks Tigger."

"Hoo hoo hoo! A tigger is always right!"

"I guess I better head back now." Hikari announced, standing up with her keyblade in hand.

The three friends also stood up.

"Already?" Pooh tilted his head.

Hikari smiled and leaned down to look at the three friends. "Don't worry, guys. I'll come back and visit! I promise." She placed her hand on Pooh's shoulder before high-fiving Tigger and patting's Piglet's head softly. "After all, I live very close to where you guys are." She pointed her finger to Pooh's chest.

"Our chest?" Pooh asked.

"No, silly! Your heart." Hikari laughed.

"Oh!" Pooh giggled, covering his mouth with his hands.

"I'll see you guys later!" Hikari waved her hand goodbye to the three friends

"I hope your friend's okay!" Piglet waved his hand.

Tigger kept on bouncing. "Bounce on back again, Pal!"

Pooh waved his hand. "We shall always be here. If you'd like to visit again, that is."

"I will!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

There was a bright light.

The brunette glanced around. She was back inside Merlin's house.

"Did you have fun, my dear?"

Hikari turned to face the wizard, nodding her head. "Yeah. A lot." She said. The girl walked towards where the book is and a grin appeared on her face when the cover of the book changed. It wasn't blank anymore. There was a drawing now. A drawing of her, Pooh, Tigger and Piglet sitting in green meadow. She placed her hand on the book before turning to face the wizard. "Thanks for showing me the book, Merlin. I had lots of fun." She grinned.

Merlin nodded. "Anytime, my dear!"

"Does this mean you will actually read those books Aerith bought you?" Cid joked, a teasing look across his face.

Hikari grinned at him. "Nope!" she popped the p, shaking her head no.

"Figures." Cid laughed.

The brunette glanced over to the clock. "Hey, I gotta go real quick." She threw her thumb over her shoulder to the direction of the door as she walked backwards. Both Cid and Merlin gave the brunette a confused look, but she gave them a reassuring grin. "I just gotta check in with Mr. Scrooge." She said.

"Oh, yes, yes, have a safe trip, my dear!" Merlin nodded his head, waving the brunette goodbye.

Cid snorted. "It's not healthy eating all those ice cream, kiddo."

"It's not healthy drinking coffee all the time too, gramps." Hikari retorted back, her hands on her hips, just before she excited the door. Before she could hear anymore of Cid's rant of her to stop calling him gramps and to have some respect for elders, the girl exited the house with only one thing in mind.

The Fountain Area.

The brunette made a dash towards the Fountain Area. She was worried beyond all reasons. She knew that Xion is capable of taking care of herself and Roxas was with her too on this mission, but she can't help but feel worried. She wasn't supposed to feel this attached to a Nobody, but for Roxas and Xion and Namine, they were a different case. She showed it perfectly of how much she cared for them and how she was constantly worrying over them. She always made jokes about how Roxas was the mother of the group, when in reality…

It was her.

The girl was out of breath when she reached the Fountain Area. The place was empty. There was no sight of the two Nobodies anywhere in that area.

She kept on glancing around, trying to find her friends.

The brunette sat on the fountain and waited.

 _For hours_.

There was no sign of the two Nobodies showing up and the sun was beginning to set.

She was staring at the ground when she suddenly saw a pair of black sneakers. She quickly glanced up and saw the people she had been waiting for.

"Roxas! Xion!" The brunette exclaimed, standing up to her feet. While the two Nobodies seemed happy, the brunette was not. She had been sitting at the fountain for more than four hours to wait for them to come. "The Starseeker went back and—huh?" she stared weirdly at the two when they exchanged glances and smiles. "What's… so funny?" she asked, frowning.

Roxas and Xion exchanged one more glance.

Xion raised her hand and a keyblade appeared in a burst of light.

It was the same as Roxas'.

When Xion held the keyblade proudly, something about her changed.

In a short few seconds, Hikari couldn't see the black-haired girl's face, but the face of a boy that resembles her a lot.

"Tadaaah!" Roxas grinned. "So? What do you think?"

The brunette blinked and the image of the boy disappeared.

One name came to mind.

"Congratulations, Xion!"

… _Sora?_


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: a new chapter! Thank you for everyone who has reviewed,read, faved and followed this story!

Stormfall: thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!

c-guest: yes, I think that's true. My memory's a bit fuzzy too haha. And thanks for the support!

Gry21: that's interesting! Thanks for sharing!

Swan girl: I'll try haha

SuperSonicBros123: thanks! She did meet Braig when she was little, but she didn't get his name or was wielding the Starseeker when she visited Radiant Garden. If she saw Braig's face then she would've probably figure out who Xigbar is haha.

Lulu9814: thanks for the support! Thank you so much!

TheIrishWriter: lol yeah. Yes? I guess Riku views the as such.

Draconicflare: aww thank you so much for the support and encouraging words! Perhaps, but either way, the Organization will find out somehow. You go, Riku! The little silver haired boy is growing up! haha

Kingdom Heart © Tetsuya Nomura, SE

* * *

Chapter 18  
nostalgia

* * *

"…vacation?"

Roxas nodded his head.

It was a Saturday.

The castle's restoration stopped on the weekends.

The weekends were the days when they can relax and spend their time doing what they like. Mostly, the committee members would sleep in and went on their own things. Aerith would mostly spend her time in the flower garden, while Yuffie would sleep in till lunch. Both Leon and Cloud would probably be found in the training area or just lounging in their own rooms. Merlin always went on a quick trip to somewhere, whereas Cid is always found in front of his computer. On the other hand, Hikari likes to go to the ice cream shop to help Scrooge around his shop. Despite the committee members having their own activities, they still spare their time to do something together.

The brunette was on her way to meet up with Scrooge when she found a hooded figure waiting for her near Scrooge's ice cream shop. They rarely meet on Saturdays and Sundays. So, when Roxas really wants to talk to Hikari, he would wait near the ice cream shop since she always helped around the elderly duck's shop from morning till the afternoon.

"Yeah. Any idea what that is?" the blond asked, rubbing the back of his neck as he averted his gaze. "Axel said that we do things we like on a vacation. Is that the objective of the mission? Do things that we like?" he added.

It took Hikari a few seconds to process Roxas' words.

"What?! You seriously don't know what a vacation is?" Hikari stared at Roxas in disbelief. When she found him near the ice cream shop, she thought that something was up and he needed some help with something important. Rather than something important, the boy asked her about what a vacation is—to which she found as a joke. "Man… I thought you were joking…" she scratched the back of her head, a sheepish look across her face.

The brunette hummed.

"Well, Axel's not wrong. A vacation is like a holiday—wait those two are the same words." The girl corrected herself. She held her chin, thinking of a better way to explain what a vacation is to Roxas. She wasn't the best at explaining things. "Okay! I got it! You stop working on a vacation!" she snapped her fingers, a grin on her lips.

Roxas blinked. "So… no missions?" he tried to confirm.

"Yup! No missions!" Hikari confirmed, nodding her head.

"Then what do we do on vacation?" Roxas asked curiously.

Hikari stared at the blond with a look, before thinking again. "Uh… like Axel said, you do something you like. Play games, watch movies—," she listed off the activities that pops into her head. They were the things that she did with her friends back in Destiny Islands—most of her weekend were filled with activities with her family and friends. "Whatever you like actually… What are Xion and Axel doing?" she asked.

Roxas crossed his arms, thinking. "Axel wanted to sleep and Xion wanted to train." He answered. "That doesn't sound like they're on vacation…"

The brunette shrugged. "Well… I guess they're doing what they liked, so I guess it's a vacation for them." She smiled a little. Despite them hanging out for quite awhile now, there are still a lot of things that she doesn't know about the Nobody. As each day passes, they became closer and yet, there's still a gap between them. "What do you wanna do for your vacation, Rox?" she turned to look at the blond.

The Nobody hummed, "I… was thinking about hanging out with you." He answered, a grin on his face.

Hikari laughed. "Are you just saying that because I'm the only one available?"

"Probably."

That earned a good shove from the girl.

Roxas laughed as he balanced himself. "But I'm serious," he glanced over to the store behind the girl. He cleared his throat, coughing into his fist. "If you, you know…have the time?" he quickly added.

"Sure, she does!" A voice chuckled. The two turned to face the duck walking closer towards them.

"Can I really?" Hikari asked, facing the duck.

Scrooge laughed as he came to a stop near the two teens. "Of course, ye can, lass! Tis' a holiday for yer friend. A special day now, isn't it?" he hooked his walking cane on his elbow and took off his top hat. He reached inside the hat and pulled a few cards out. "How 'bout I suggest Disney Town for ye youngsters to play? The Dream Festival started not too long ago! They're not lifetime passes, but tis fun to spend yer day there, lad." He turned to face the hooded boy.

"How much?" Roxas asked.

The duck hummed. "Since yer friends with Hikari, 400 each. I'll even throw in an extra pass." He slid the two cards, revealing a third one behind the second one.

Before Roxas could take out the munny to pay, Hikari beat him to it.

"Sold!" Hikari shouted, shaking Scrooge's hand. She pulled out the munny from her wallet and gave the exact amount. She placed the munny on Scrooge's hand and took the passes. "Thanks for the discount, Mr. Scrooge!" she grinned.

"Anytime, my dear! It's still a bit early to go to Disney Town. They're probably still preparin' for the day. I suggest goin' a little bit later." Scrooge advised, holding on his walking cane.

Hikari nodded, giving a thumbs-up. "Thanks for the advice!"

"Now go on and have fun!" the duck smiled back before going back into his shop.

The brunette held the three passes in her hand, her eyes following Scrooge until he was out of her line of sight. She stared down at the three passes and the corner of her lips twitched up to a smile. They were the exact same like the one she had when she was little, the only difference is the back of the pass. A 'One-day pass' was printed instead of a 'Lifetime pass'.

' _So… it's almost your birthday, huh, Ven?'_ she thought, lifting her gaze up to look at the clear blue sky.

She turned to look at Roxas and raised an eyebrow when she noticed the look across his face.

"What?" Hikari asked, staring at the blond with a raised eyebrow. She placed her hand on her hip when she finally caught on what the look Roxas was giving her. "Oh, come on… is this about your man pride about paying?" she sighed.

Roxas thought for a moment and a grin appeared on his face. "Actually… nope. I get to save 800 munny." He joked.

Hikari shove Roxas away playfully. "Right…" she drawled out, rolling her eyes when the boy gave her a grin. The brunette pocketed the three passes inside her pouch and turned to face the blond, a hand on her hip. "So… what should we do now? Anything you have in mind to kill time?" she asked.

"Hmm," Roxas hummed, a hand on his chin as he stared at the ground. An idea seemed to came to mind, judging from the way his expression changed. He raised his gaze to meet Hikari's curious stare. "How about we go to Twilight Town?" he suggested.

The brunette blinked. "Twilight Town?" she echoed.

Since Riku confronted her of her friendship with Roxas and Xion, he had been checking up on her more often than before. She was glad that he came and visited her, but at the same time she wasn't all that happy with the way he acted when she hung around her two friends. He didn't say anything of it to DiZ or Mickey or even Yen Sid, but that doesn't mean he approved of them hanging around together.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah, I figured…you showed me around Hollow Bastion, but I haven't showed you the world I usually hang out. So, I thought, why not?"

"That's actually a great idea! We can hang around Twilight Town and when we want to go to Disney Town, we can ask Xion to join! She has to be finish training by then!" Hikari grinned.

It wouldn't hurt to explore Twilight Town with Roxas.

Roxas' expression seemed to brighten even more. "Great idea!"

The Nobody leaded the way back to the alley where he appeared. He raised his hand and summoned the Corridor of Darkness. He stepped inside, placing his foot through the dark swirls before he looked back to the girl behind him.

"C'mon, Hikari! I know this seemed creepy and all, but I promise it won't take long to reach Twilight Town!" Roxas encouraged. He seemed to notice the look across Hikari's face when she stared at the portal. "What's this? Is the Almighty Hikari _scared_? I thought you're not afraid of anything?" he taunted, a smirk across his lips.

"Am not!" Hikari retorted back, glaring at her friend.

It wasn't that she was afraid. She didn't have the Organization cloak on for obvious reasons. DiZ warned her not to use the Corridor of Darkness without the cloak. He specifically told her that they were unsafe for a normal person to travel, because the constant use of the corridor would corrupt one's heart. She has to be careful when using it. If she used it too often, she'll be the next Heartless they would be fighting.

"Then, c'mon!" Roxas disappeared into the portal, leaving the girl behind.

Hikari hesitated. She hasn't used one of those portals for a while now.

' _Maybe one more time won't hurt.'_

The brunette stepped inside the portal.

Just when she stepped through, something felt strange to her. Nothing seemed to physically change, but there was an odd feeling.

Something that she can't quite describe.

She placed a hand over her heart, looking down.

"Hikari!"

The girl looked up, seeing her friend waving his hand for her to hurry.

"Coming, coming!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So, this is Twilight Town…"

"Yeah."

"It's so calm and quiet here."

Hikari stared around the empty streets. No matter how much she has visited Twilight Town, there was a relaxing and cozy atmosphere around, despite the fact she had fought several Heartless there. The brunette acted as if it was her first time visiting. She followed where Roxas was going. They were at the Sandlot, a large open space where teenagers like to play a game called Struggle. They walked around the field to reach the other side, since they don't want to disturb the game.

"So, where are we headed?" Hikari asked, glancing over to look at the game before turning her attention back to her friend.

"The Clock Tower. It has a fantastic view, but first we need to buy sea salt ice cream." Roxas answered, turning his gaze over his shoulder.

Hikari gave him a look.

"It's tradition." Roxas gave a shrug. His eyes suddenly widened and he quickly stepped forward, his hand reaching out. In a swift movement, he caught a ball that was headed straight for Hikari's head. He stared at the ball in his hand with a frown.

"Whoa!" Hikari exclaimed, staring at Roxas in shock. She didn't even feel it coming. One minute she was giving Roxas the look and the next he caught a ball that was probably going to hit her head and cause brain damage. She was probably being dramatic, but the main point was that Roxas has a quick reaction. "Nice catch there, Rox!" she whistled, taking the ball from him.

"You could've gotten hurt…" Roxas didn't like the idea Hikari was taking this lightly.

Hikari blew a raspberry. "Psssh! This thing? It's rubber!" she laughed, squeezing the ball as hard as she can to prove her point to the overly worried Nobody. For someone who has no feelings, he sure could express them perfectly. "See? You're being dramatic." She waved him off.

"But—!"

"Hey! Sorry about that!" a boy came running towards them. The two teens turned around, finding a chubby boy with a red shirt standing in front of them. He looked worried when his eyes landed on the brunette. "We didn't mean to hit it towards you… it just… slipped." He apologized sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

Hikari shook her head. "Nah, don't worry about it. This thing can't even hurt me if you throw like a thousand of them. It would just be like taking a dive into a ball-pit." She joked, tossing the rubber ball up and down. The boy laughed at her joke. "What's with the rubber ball?" she asked, giving the ball back to the boy.

"Yeah… we wanted to play at school, but the baseball team was practicing so we decided to move to the Sandlot." The boy sighed, tossing the ball from one hand to the other a few times. "There's just too many windows here and we don't want to break anything, so yeah… that explains the rubber equipment."

The brunette hummed. "Touché…"

The boy turned his attention to the cloaked Nobody and his eyes widened, a smile widening. "Hey! I know you! How's it going?" he asked.

Roxas blinked. "Oh umm, great… thanks." He answered.

"Did you find your friend?" the boy asked again and Roxas replied with a nod.

"You guys know each other?" a girl came up to them, glancing from the boy to the two teenagers.

The boy nodded. "Sorta. We bumped into each other a while back." he explained. The boy then turned to Hikari, motioning his hand to the girl and himself. "But we haven't met yet. Nice to meet 'cha! The name's Pence!" he stretched his arm out, a smile on his face.

Hikari shook his hand. "Call me Hikari! This is my friend, Roxas. Nice to meet 'cha!"

"I'm Olette. Nice to meet you." the girl shook hands with the shorter girl and. Another boy approached them, a laid-back smile across his face. "And that's Hayner." The girl directed her hand to the platinum blond.

"And we're sorry for almost hitting you." Olette quickly added, an apologetic look across her face.

"Like I said, don't sweat it!" Hikari grinned. She glanced over to their other friend and then back to Pence who was holding the large rubber ball in his hands. "I doubt this is baseball, but what's with the huge ball?"

"We're playing Grandstander." The boy named Hayner walked towards them, the blue bat rested on his shoulder.

"Grand…stander?" Roxas repeated, tilting his head in confusion. He turned to face Hikari and she shook her head.

Olette turned to face the two teens. "Yeah, you keep hitting the ball in the air and try to keep it from touching the ground." She explained.

"Hayner's one of the best in town!" Pence piped in.

Hayner hummed, staring at the two teens with a judging look. "You two new around here? How come you're bothering us?" he huffed out, asking the two teens, but it was more directed towards Roxas than Hikari.

"Bothering? We're not—sheesh, we were just passing by." Roxas sighed out, frowning.

The platinum blond gave a bored look, crossing his arms. "Uh-huh. Well, keep passing by then. We're busy here." He scoffed, throwing his thumb over his shoulder, telling the two newcomers to beat it.

Hikari became defensive. "Um, excuse me? Your ball was the one that almost hit us here." she placed her hand on her chest, giving an offended look. She didn't mind if the ball that almost hit her is an accident, but when someone is being rude to her or her friends because of something that they didn't do, that's when she will step up. "If anything, you should be apologizing here instead of Olette." She retorted.

Hayner turned to face the brunette. "You wanna go at it, girly?" he glared.

"Hayner!" Olette chided, slapping the boy by his shoulder. "There's no need to be mean to them! And besides, she's right, you know." She placed her hands on her hips, furrowing her eyebrows at Hayner.

Pence gave a sheepish laugh. "Sorry about that. I'm sure he didn't mean to offend you guys. He's just—," he stopped when Hayner shoved the Struggle Bat to Roxas and Hikari's way.

"You try it then. Let's see your juggling act." Hayner smirked.

"What—?" Roxas didn't have time to react.

"You're on!" Hikari grinned, giving a determined look as she grabbed hold of the handle. She turned to face Roxas and nudged him by his arm. She didn't want to make enemies with the Twilight Town kids, but she didn't want to be looked down either just because she's a newcomer. "C'mon, Rox! This is a matter of pride! If we beat this guy's record, we get bragging rights! Twice as much with if the both of us are playing!" she laughed, twirling the bat in her hand.

The atmosphere was tensed around them a few minutes ago and now it was more of a friendly competition than anything.

"Hey!" Hayner shouted.

Olette couldn't help but giggle.

"You ready?" Pence asked, tossing the ball up and down.

Hikari nodded and Pence threw the rubber ball.

They both decided Hikari would go first and then Roxas.

The game was sort of like a game of Capteh, but instead of balancing with your feet, a bat was used instead. It was an easy game to be honest. The only objective of the game is to keep the ball up in the air as long as you can. The hardest thing about the game is how _long_ they can keep it up. At first, it was easy, but after the twentieth hit and running around the field to prevent it from hitting the ground, it was harder.

The total score Hikari got was thirty-three while Roxas scored forty-six.

"Wow! You guys were great!" Olette clapped her hands when Roxas let the ball fell because he was tired after the fortieth hit.

Pence nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah! You totally give Hayner a run for his money!" he crossed his hands behind his head, a smile on his face.

"Way the go, Rox!" Hikari jumped on the blond, wrapping her arm around his neck as she kept on praising him. "We beat the mop-head's record!" she laughed, grinning from ear to ear.

Hayner rolled his eyes, "You didn't. He did. My record's thirty-five." He snorted as a smirk was seen on his lips when Hikari's look fell as she slumped her shoulders in disappointment. The platinum blond gave a short laugh, crossing his arms. "But I'll admit, you guys did pretty good for a first timer." He raised his hand, offering it for a shake.

The brunette recovered from her loss in the game. "Thanks!" she shook hands with the boy.

"I guess you guys are alright. We're cool, man." Hayner grinned before turning to Roxas.

"Uh… thanks?" Roxas replied with a small smile.

"Sorry for railing on you guys before." Hayner apologized, rubbing the back of his neck.

A snigger passed Pence's lips. "Hayner's just grumpy because Seifer beat his record."

"Hey! Don't say that!" Hayner turned to face Pence sharply, raising his fist up threateningly in a joking manner.

Olette giggled.

"Not you too!" Hayner turned to face the girl.

Both Roxas and Hikari shared a laughed, making the whole group besides Hayner laugh as well.

Hayner let out a groan. "Oh great… now you got the new kids laughing at me too." He huffed out, crossing his arms.

Pence's laughter died down to a chuckle. "So, you guys doing anything after this?"

Hikari glanced over to Roxas and the boy shrugged, giving a smile. "Actually…" she trailed off. It would be nice to spend a few hours playing with Hayner, Pence and Olette, but it wasn't right of her to just decide things on her own. Sure, Roxas gave her the approval, but she had a feeling that this wasn't how Roxas wanted to spend his day off. "Yeah… Sorry… maybe some other time?" she offered the three friends a smile.

"Sure! Sorry for holding you two up." Hayner nodded his head. He glanced over to his two friends two as he took the Struggle Bat from the ground as Pence took the ball. "We should get going too." He said.

"We'll see you later then!" Pence said his goodbye.

Olette agreed. "Bye for now! Hope we can practice Grandstander again soon!" she waved her hand as the trio ran towards the other side of the Sandlot.

Hikari waved her hand goodbye, watching the three friends leave the Sandlot. She turned her attention back to Roxas. "So! Ice cream shop? Lead the way, Mr. Tour Guide!" she stretched out her arm, motioning for Roxas to take the lead.

Roxas shook his head, a small smile on his lips. "Why didn't you say yes? I gave a nod now, didn't I?" he asked as he took the lead to the Tram Common.

The brunette hummed. "I figured you should spend your day off doing what you want and not the other way around." she simply answered. They were already in front of the ice cream shop when an elderly woman came out to greet them. "And besides, we can't waste the tickets we bought." She gave another reason.

Roxas laughed. "You're right." He said before turning to face the elderly woman. "Two sea-salt please." He held two fingers up, a smile on his face.

"Here you go, dear." The woman handed the two popsicles in a bag as Roxas paid for the treat. "Come again soon." She said kindly, waving goodbye to her two customers.

Hikari followed Roxas to the Clock Tower. She had been to the Clock Tower once when she was seeing Mickey off. In fact, during her visits to Twilight Town, she rarely went to the Clock Tower. The times when she visited the world, DiZ had kept her and Riku busy by collecting some items for him—sometimes, they went to another world to find what DiZ was looking for.

When they reach the Clock Tower, it wasn't busy at all. The two went inside the Central Station and Roxas made a beeline to the elevator on the left side of the station. Hikari hesitated for a moment, glancing left and right to see if anyone is coming to stop them from entering the door.

"What's wrong? Aren't you coming?" Roxas asked, looking back to see the brunette.

Hikari glanced around as she approached the blond. "You sure it's okay to go up the tower?" she questioned as the two went inside the elevator.

Roxas pressed the button on the elevator and the door hiss closed. "Yeah? Why wouldn't it?" he raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the wall. The brunette answered with a shrug and the boy blinked a few times. "What's wrong with you today anyway? You've been acting paranoid!" he laughed.

"I'm not being paranoid!" Hikari huffed out, glaring at the blond.

"Right, right, oh, we're here." The door to the elevator opened and they were met with a closed room. The two teens stepped out of the elevator and into the room with a single staircase going up to another floor. Roxas was the first one out to go to the staircase. "C'mon, we need to go up one floor to reach the top." He pointed his finger up the staircase.

Hikari followed behind him, their footsteps echoing in each step they took. She closed her eyes when there was a bright light. She covered her eyes with her hand, trying to block the sunlight from entering her eyes. Slowly, she eyes started to adjust and she opened her eyes, staring at the breathtaking view of Twilight Town and the sunset.

"Nice view, right?" Roxas asked as he stepped over to the ledge. He sat down and waited for Hikari to do the same.

The town looked so small from where the sat. The wind wasn't very strong. It was a cool gentle breeze that would usually be felt in the hills. The sky was painted an orange-ish red color with the endless sun setting down behind the clouds. The brunette sat beside the blond, taking in the view with a smile on her face.

Something blue was seen from the corner of her eyes.

"Thanks." Hikari took the sea-salt flavored ice cream.

Roxas smiled and took a bite from his popsicle. "So, what do you think? Do you still prefer chocolate or sea salt?" he teased.

Hikari rolled her eyes. "Get real. Chocolate will always be my number one." She retorted, taking a bite from her ice cream as well. She didn't mind the flavor. It reminded her of her days when she met Kairi in Radiant Garden. A frown replaced her smile. She never got the chance to talk to Kairi after regaining her memories from Namine. She missed talking to her, even though she sometimes pays a visit to keep an eye. "But the flavor is not bad… kind of… nostalgic in a way." She took another bite.

"Nostalgic?" Roxas echoed.

"Umm… kind of like the feeling when you remember something from the past." Hikari explained.

"I wish I could feel nostalgic." Roxas turned to face the town. "But… this seems nostalgic in a way, right? I feel like I've seen so many sunsets before."

Hikari snapped her fingers. "That, my friend, is nostalgia." She laughed.

The Nobody laughed.

"Try not to eat too much ice cream though, I'm taking you guys out to the best ice cream place in the whole worlds!" Hikari exclaimed.

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "Even better than sea-salt and chocolate?" he asked, finishing the ice cream as he held on the stick between his fingers.

"It's still chocolate. Actually, you can make your own ice cream!" Hikari grinned.

"Seems fun." Roxas replied.

"Tis fun for the whole family!" Hikari mimicked Scrooge's voice and Roxas gave a laugh.

The blond stood up. "I guess, I should see if Xion's done with her training." He said as he raised his hand, summoning a dark corridor. He turned his gaze over his shoulder, staring at the girl sitting on the ledge. "Be right back." he said as he stepped inside the portal.

Hikari nodded her head and turned back to look at the town.

She looked down to her ice cream, that was half-eaten. It tasted better than the one Scrooge made her taste. This was probably the taste Scrooge was looking for, but she doubts the nice old lady from the ice cream shop would want her ice cream's recipe to be copied. She finished the last bit of her sea-salt ice cream and held the stick up. She wondered if she gave Kairi some sea-salt she would remember her past.

"Hey! Sorry for the wait!" Roxas' voice brought her back from her trail of thoughts. The brunette turned back and saw another girl walked out of the portal. "Look who's finished with her training!" he said, directing his hands to the girl standing behind him.

Xion flashed a smile. "I heard Hikari was here and I decided to stop."

"Hey, how come you didn't stop when I asked you?" Roxas pouted.

"Roxas, Roxas, Roxas," Hikari tsked as she stood up and walked over to the two Nobodies. She placed her hand on Xion's shoulder and gave a smug look towards the blond boy. "It's obvious that Xion likes me better than you." She teased.

"Hey!"

The black-haired girl giggled. "I like the both of you."

Hikari puffed out her cheeks. "You're no fun…"

The trio laughed.

"Well, are you guys ready to go to Disney Town and have fun?!" Hikari asked, throwing her fist up excitedly. The two Nobodies nodded their head and the brunette pulled out the Star Shard from her pouch. "Alrighty then! Hold hands!" she offered her hand to Xion, who took it and Roxas held Xion's hand, connecting the three.

Hikari raised the Star Shard above her head.

"Take us to Disney Town!"

The Star Shard glowed brightly and it took off into the sky, taking the three teens with it.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Where are we?"

"Disney Town! The happiest place on the planet!"

It was the first time both Roxas and Xion had seen the lively world. Everything seemed so happy and alive. The colors of the buildings were bright and colorful. The plaza was decorated festively to fit the mood. A few banners were hung above their heads and balloons decorated the whole area. They could also hear music being played around the plaza.

"I've never seen a place so… happy." Xion blinked, staring at her surroundings.

"We're in time for the Dream Festival! That's why everything's so festive." Hikari explained as she took a map from the stall near the small pavilion. She opened the map to the town and stared at the landmarks around. "Well, what do you guys want to do first? There's a lot of activities here to do." She showed the map to the two Nobodies.

Roxas leaned in to take a better look at the map. "Fruitball, Rumble Racing, Mystery Manor, the Arcade, Mad Tea Party, Space Mountain, Autopia, Jungle Cruise… wow that's a lot… do you think we'll be able to ride all of those?" he asked, turning to face Xion and Hikari.

"Maybe not… maybe we should go for the ones that has your interest." Hikari said, looking down to the map. "Ice cream is a must! So, let's go do that last to end the day." She grinned.

"Sounds good! How about Rumble Racing? That seems interesting, right?" Roxas pointed his finger to the racing area.

"Oh! How about we try the Mad Tea Party next?" Xion suggested, pointing to the cups on the map. "And after that, Fruitball."

Hikari laughed. "You guys are excited! Okay! After Fruitball, let's go to the Mystery Manor! That place is tons of fun too!" she closed the map when they all agreed on the ride they would be playing. "Should we head off to Rumble Racing?" she offered, pointing to the direction where Rumble Racing is.

Xion giggled and ran first. "Race you guys there." She said as she ran passed the two teens.

Both Roxas and Hikari glanced at each other, grins on their faces.

It wasn't long until the three reached the Raceway. From the distance, they could already hear the sound of engines roaring in the background. The three stopped right in front of the Raceway Registration with Xion coming out as the victor between the three.

"No fair, Xi! You had a head start!" Hikari complained as she tried to catch her breath. Both Roxas and her were exhausted when they reached the Raceway. It was embarrassing since she had lots of training with the committee and as a baseball player, but she can't help but admit defeat.

Xion smiled. "Maybe you guys are just out of shape with all of those ice cream that you've ate." She joked, giggling behind her hand.

"Hey…" Roxas pouted, placing a hand over his stomach.

Both Xion and Hikari burst out laughing.

"This is actually the first time I've seen a guy complaining about his weight." Hikari sniggered as she and Xion walked first towards the Registration desk.

"I guess Roxas is just not like any other guys." Xion nodded her head.

Roxas came up to the two girls. "That just means I'm special." He retorted with a proud look.

Hikari rolled her eyes before walking in front of the two Nobodies to register them all in the race. She never tried Rumble Racing when she visited as a kid, probably because she was too young to race back then. She blinked when she saw the persons behind the desk.

"Hey, Chip, Dale! Long time no see!" Hikari leaned down on the deck, placing her elbow on it.

"Hikari! It's been a while!" Dale chirped, turning to see the girl. "How have you been doing?" Chip continued.

"Great! Thanks for asking! Say, do you think you can fit me and my friends for the next race?" Hikari pointed her thumb over her shoulder, revering to her two friends.

Dale giggled, covering his mouth, "Sure can do! You're just in time for the next race!" he said.

Chip pulled out a mini clipboard, taping it with a miniature pencil. "We just need your names and you're good to go!" he wrote down Hikari's name before turning to face Roxas and Xion.

"Roxas."

"X—Xion."

Chip wrote down the two names. "Okay! Welcome to Rumble Racing, fellas!" he placed the clipboard down and he stood in front of the three. "Alright, before we start, lemme explain the rules. We have two simple rules, don't cheat and don't hurt the other players! Simply right? Now for the course, go through three laps around the course and the first one to the finish line is the winner! There are a few ramps and shortcuts with a few obstacles, but we've calculated everything! So, it's perfectly save." He explained before directing his hand for the trio to pass through the gate and leaded them to the course.

"Gather around, kids! We're 'bout to explain how to use the vehicle!" Dale climbed up to the car with no wheels and motioned for everyone to gather around him.

The three gathered around the chipmunks, waiting for them to explain.

"Okay, so the right pedal is the gas, the left one is the breaks. You push this button right here to start the engine!" Dale pointed at the red button that has the word 'start' was printed above. He then moved over to point at the orange button before pointing at the gauge above it. "You can use the boost button right here, but it can only be used when the gauge here is full." He finished.

"Pretty simple, right?" Chip crossed his arms, a smile on his face.

Roxas rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess so."

"What do we win?" Hikari grinned, crossing her hands behind her head.

"A pin and bragging rights!" Dale giggled.

"Remember to have fun! That's the goal of this race!" Chip added. "Now into your vehicles! We're about to start the race!"

Hikari grinned as the chipmunks left the course.

Xion held the helmet that was placed on her vehicle. "I've never driven a mini car before…" she said with worry.

"Same here." Roxas placed the helmet on, clipping it on below his chin.

"Neither have I, but this is going to be fun!" Hikari laughed as she jumps into her vehicle. "Good luck guys! I'm going to beat you in this!" she gave a thumbs-up before announcing that she would be the one victorious.

Xion giggled. "Whatever happens to there's no winner or losers?"

Roxas shook his head. "You know how Hikari is." He stepped inside his own vehicle, turning to face Xion. "Good luck."

" _Racers! Are you ready?"_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"And the winner of the Fruitball game is Team A!"

Hikari huffed tiredly when Horace announced the winner of the game of Fruitball. About the game itself, she didn't expect the game to actually use giant fruit as balls for them to hit like volleyballs. She couldn't count the times how much she had slipped over a giant banana peel. She had teamed up with Clara Cluck while Roxas and Xion teamed up with each other. Roxas and Xion came out as the victor in the game. At first, it was her team that won, but after round two and three, they lost.

"Nice play." Hikari stood up and went over to Roxas and Xion, congratulating the two of them for winning the match.

"You too." Roxas grinned, shaking hands with the brunette before shaking Clara's hand.

It had been a few hours since Rumble Racing and they were having so much fun with the attraction and games in the festival. For the race, the one who won is Roxas, with Xion coming in second. As for Hikari, she came in fourth since she somehow kept on bumping into the railings. Right after Rumble Racing, the three went over to the Mad Tea Party where Hikari had too much fun spinning the tea cup. Before they went over to the next game in their list, they went over to ride a few attractions closest to the Mad Tea Party.

"Thanks for playing Fruitball, fellas!" Horace came, thanking the players. "Hope you have fun in the Dream Festival!" he waved the three teens goodbye.

"Thank you for having us." Xion thanked politely before catching up with her two friends. She walked in between them, a smile across her lips. "So, what's up next?" she asked the brunette.

"The Mystery Manor." Hikari answered, leading the way to the direction where the Mystery Manor is. The brunette remembered both version that she went through. The first one was with Ventus and the second one was herself. She went through the manor. It was fun with the first three rooms, but the mirror maze was a different one. It was different from the past three rooms. It was the only room that has a differed vibe to it. "Actually… there's something in the Mystery Manor that I want you guys to see." She said stopping for a bit.

Roxas stopped as well. "What is it?" he asked, turning around.

"Well… you guys always wondered what your past is like, right?" Hikari asked the two and they both gave nods. She remembered the purpose of the mirror and it worked like just like she was told. "There's this mirror… if you looked at the mirror, it'll reflect what's inside your heart, the things that you longed the most." She explained.

Xion placed a hand over her chest. "But we don't have hearts…"

"That's not true. You have to have a heart to express those feelings." Hikari grinned, referring to the days when Roxas and Xion expressed their feelings. They acted like every other person. "It's a magic mirror! Anything can happen." She smiled, reassuring them.

Both Roxas and Xion smiled, exchanging looks. "Alright, let's try it!"

Hikari grinned and then continued to lead the way to the Mystery Manor. When they reached the manor, something felt off. The brunette squinted her eyes to look better at the scene from the distance. There were a few magic brooms walking in and out of the Mystery Manor. The queen herself and Clarabelle were standing right at the entrance.

"What's going on?" Xion asked, worry in her voice.

"Dunno. Let's find out." Hikari ran towards the entrance, her eyebrows furrowed down. The three nodded and both Roxas and Xion pulled their hoods up over their head to hide their identity. "Queen Minnie!" she called out and bowed her head in respect as she stood before the queen.

"Oh! Hikari! It's been awhile, hasn't it?" The Queen turned around, giving a small smile. "But unfortunately, you can't go inside the Mystery Manor today." She let out a long sigh, her hand on her cheek.

"Did something happen?" Hikari asked in concern, glancing over to the entrance and back to the queen and Clarabelle.

Clarabelle huffed, crossing her arms. "Some people had the nerve to destroy all the mirrors in the Mirror Maze. Looks like someone didn't like what they're seeing." She frowned deeply.

Hikari gasped. "Even the Enchanted Mirror?!"

Minnie nodded sadly. "Unfortunately, yes… every single mirror is broken to pieces." She folded her hands in front of her.

"That's terrible…" Xion said.

Roxas furrowed his eyebrows down. "Who would do such a thing?"

"I dunno, but I hoped the person who broke all those mirrors would have a thousand years of bad luck!" Hikari bumped her fist into her hand a couple of times. Clearly, she wasn't pleased with what the culprit has done. She was mad that someone destroyed her childhood place. The mirror maze was the place that made her realize how much Sora and Riku meant to her when she was a kid. It opened her eyes how much important her friends and family are. "Don't worry, Your Highness. I'll find the one who did this and give 'em a piece of my mind!" she gave a determined look.

Minnie smiled, "I appreciate it, my dear, but there's no need for that. Violence is not always the answer." She advised. "Please inform Merlin of this incident, my dear. He'll know what to do."

Hikari nodded her head. "Will do."

"I hope with this attraction down, it won't bring your Dream Festival spirit down as well." Clarabelle giggled. She placed her hand on Hikari's shoulder and turned her attention from the girl to the two cloaked teens. "Go on and enjoy your day in the festival, let us worry about this incident!" she winked.

"Thank you." Hikari smiled before turning to Minnie. "Please excuse us, Your Highness."

Minnie giggled. "Please enjoy the rest of your day."

The brunette turned to face both Roxas and Xion and leaded them away from the area to the next attraction they wanted to play, Ice Cream Beat.

"…I'm sorry you guys." Hikari apologized, rubbing the back of her neck. She gave them so much hope about them finding about their past with the help of the mirror, but in the end, she crushed their hope because she was giving too much.

Roxas smiled and wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulder. "Hey, don't sweat it." He said, ruffling the girl's hair playfully.

"We can always find out in another way." Xion added, giving Hikari an encouraging pat on her back. "There's no need to rush."

The corner of Hikari's lips twitched to a smile.

"Hey, ice cream on me, whichever you girls want." Roxas said, patting his chest a few times proudly.

Xion giggled. "Alright then!"

They went back to the town plaza to visit the ice cream parlor. There was a moogle behind the counter. The moogle dressed in an apron gave the three a menu of the ice cream served in the parlor. Surprisingly, Roxas choose another flavor instead of sea-salt.

"Snow Bear for me." Roxas ordered, making the two girls gasp.

Hikari quickly read over the description. "A healthy, tofu-flavored ice cream! Roxas has gone healthy!" she exclaimed dramatically, squishing her face with her hands.

"Hey, what's wrong with that?" Roxas glared as he took the polar bear shaped ice cream from the moogle.

Xion shook her head. "Nothing, Nothing… I'll have Honeybunny, please."

"…Choco Blast." Hikari smiled at the picture of the ice cream. She remembered that Ventus was the one who made it for her and she was the one who named it. Being her three-year-old self, she named it with the first word that pops up in her head after seeing the amount of chocolate in the ice cream. It had been ten years since she had tasted the ice cream again. She just hoped she wouldn't have to wait another ten years to eat the ice cream again.

Roxas 'tsk'ed a few times, a smile on his face. "It's always chocolate with you. Don't you want to try something else? How about Milky Way? It looks interesting." He said, paying for the sweet treats.

Hikari shook her head, taking her ice cream from the moogle. "Nah… chocolate is my favorite. I'll stick to chocolate till the end!" she said dramatically.

Xion giggled as she held the ice cream cone. "How about we take a seat?" she said, pointing her finger to the empty bench by the pavilion. Roxas and Hikari agreed and went over to the empty seats. The three sat and stared at their ice cream in their hands. "Okay, in the count of three, let's dig in." she smiled.

"One,"

"Two,"

"Three!"

"It tasted sweeter than I expected." Roxas said after he took a bite from his ice cream. "How's yours', Xion?" he turned his head to the girl sitting beside him.

"Sweet." Xion answered before turning her head to face the last of the group. "How's your— Hikari?"

There tears streaming down the young girl's cheek.

"Hikari?!" Roxas quickly stood up, completely surprised to see the girl crying. "What's wrong?!" he kneeled down in front of her, staring at worry.

A laugh escaped Hikari's lips. "Nothing! It's so delicious that it made me cry!" she lifted her gaze up, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. She offered her ice cream for Roxas and Xion to taste. "Go ahead! Try it!"

Roxas sighed. "Really? Did you just cry over an ice cream?" he took the small spoon sticking out from the ice cream and took a small scoop of the chocolate ice cream. "It's good, but I still prefer sea salt." He commented.

Xion giggled, "You're the only one who we know that will cry tears of joy after eating, Hikari." she teased as she took the spoon from her ice cream to taste Hikari's ice cream.

The brunette gave a sheepish laugh.

Truly the taste wasn't the only thing that made her cry.

It was because of the memory behind it.

She placed her hand over her chest. That feeling returned.

* * *

 _H_ _ **a**_ v _i_ _ **n**_ **g** _ **f**_ un t _ **h**_ _e_ _ **re**_ _,  
S_ **u** _ **n**_ _s_ _ **h**_ _i_ n _e?_


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Merry late Christmas and Happy late New Year guys! Hope you guys have a wonderful year!

Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, read and reviewed this story!

Guest 1: I'm back~

Guest 2: Hey, that's a good idea 😃

Guest 3: let's find out in this chapter! 😉

Maetrix: awwww thank you so much!

Guest 4: Challenge accepted! I always wanted to draw Hikari in her fighting stance

Guest 5: thank you!

Mysterygirl45: thank you so much for your thoughts! I enjoyed reading your review.

c-guest: here's more~

Guest 6: I think it's about a year, but that's a really cute idea!

Lulu9814: thank you! The nostalgia is too strong.

Stormfall: thank you!

TheIrishWriter: thank you! 'bad luck' huh? It will be explained in later chapters though lol.

KH © SE, Tetsuya Nomura

Sorry for the long wait, now onwards to the chapter!

* * *

Chapter 19  
gift

* * *

" _Is that your excuse… for keeping me imprisoned here, isn't it?!"_

 _"I failed… I had the chance to stop him and couldn't do it. But I will not fail again."_

 _"Master! Have you gone mad?"_

 _"Why do all my attempts to reach you fail? If you don't have it in your heart to obey… then you will have to share Ventus' fate!"_

 _"Terra!"_

* * *

Hikari snapped her eyes wide open.

Her hands gripped on the covers tightly, a still a little startled from the nightmare. She took deep breaths to calm her rapidly beating heart. She sat up on her bed, rubbing her tired eyes before glancing over to look at the clock on the nightstand.

1:58 am

The brunette sighed before laying back down. It only had been two hours since she went to bed and she was already waking up from a nightmare. Again.

This night wasn't the first time she had been woken up from a nightmare.

It was a nightly occurrence. She had been having nightmares ever since she went through the corridors of darkness with Roxas.

It wasn't exactly nightmares to begin with… it was more like memories—of Ventus, Terra and Aqua…

—from someone _else's_ perspective.

It felt like nightmares.

An endless one at that.

She could actually feel the pain and sadness, but can't seem to remember any of it the moment she woke up.

It was frightening to say the least.

The brunette never told anyone about it. She couldn't anyway. She wanted to ask Naminé, but she didn't want her to worry more than she should.

Naminé already has too much weight on her shoulders and Hikari didn't want to add more weight to it. She was under the pressure of DiZ's constant demands to quicken the recovery of her brother's memories. Plus, the Organization were after her.

Hikari couldn't imagine the amount of stress Naminé was under.

And yet, Naminé still worry about her.

The Nobody have always been worrying about her—no matter how much she reassured that she was fine. Whether it's about her getting hurt from a Heartless attack or about not eating healthy foods, she would always fret over the littlest things. Naminé was almost as bad as Riku—the mother hen—when it comes to her well-being.

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she stared at the ceiling.

She closed her eyes, trying to go back to sleep with, hopefully, no more nightmares.

"G'night…" she murmured to no one in particular before turning to sleep on her side.

A dreamless sleep is better than waking up from a nightmare.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari yawned loudly, covering her mouth with her hand.

It was around ten in the morning. After waking up from the nightmare that early morning, she couldn't actually sleep well. She kept waking up a few times until her alarm clock finally goes off. The committee didn't notice her lack of sleep since she sometimes likes to stay up late to read the comic books Yuffie lend her. It was frustrating that she couldn't tell anyone about her dreams—the only place she could admit everything was her Scrapbook Diary.

Today was actually a different activity for the committee. They weren't working in the Restoration site, but in a different world this time. Disney Town to be exact. A few days after Hikari told Merlin that the mirrors in the Mystery Manor were all broken to pieces—the aged wizard insisted that the whole committee come and help him in cleaning and restoring the mirror maze.

Yuffie and Aerith easily agreed. The ninja was eager to travel to another world. The others agreed as well—though Cid insisted that he has to stay behind and monitor Hollow Bastion. He did say that he would join the them in a few hours. Both Leon and Cloud surprisingly went along and agreed to help—which was surprising since Hikari never knew they would actually step foot in a happy-go-lucky place like Disney Town, considering how _cool_ they are.

"Can you believe this, Hikari? Look at all the food and games!" Yuffie chirped excitedly, her eyes sparkling at the sight of the stalls around. "How's about you and me play Fruitball. One on one?" she grinned and draped her arm over Hikari's shoulders.

"Sure! Loser pays the winner's dinner?" Hikari offered, a playful look across her face.

Yuffie whistled. "Get ready to lose! Hope you have enough munny to buy me a full course menu." She fist-bumped Hikari's fist, sealing the deal between the two of them.

Hikari snorted in reply. "Puh-lease! I'm not going to lose that easily!"

Leon sighed, karate-chopping the top of the girls' head. "We're not here to eat and play games yet. We're on duty here." He scolded as he crossed his arms across his chest.

The younger of the three let a snigger escaped her lips.

The man flashed her a warning look and she stopped. "Now go on and get to work—the _both_ of you. You two had enough rest." He ordered, pointing his finger at the direction of the entrance.

"Awww c'mon, Squall! Can't you give us twenty more minutes? Look at Hikari! she's been yawning all morning!" Yuffie whined, poking the girl's cheek a few times.

Leon rolled his eyes. "That's because she's been reading the comic books you've lend her." he retorted and the black-haired girl gave a sheepish laugh. Hikari mimicked Yuffie's sheepish gesture, a smile on her lips. The man let out a soft sigh, placing a hand on his hip and the other on his forehead. "Fine… ten more minutes—but not more breaks until lunch." He said sternly before walking away.

Yuffie cheered loudly. "Yes! Time to hit the stalls! Let's go, Hikari!"

Hikari followed Yuffie in a slower pace. "Hey! Leave some for me, would ya?!"

It wasn't that she's not excited to be spending the day in Disney Town with the committee—she's truly is. This would be the first time she has ever seen both Cloud and Leon volunteered in a festival. Once their job is done, they could spend their day doing whatever they want in the festival. But the point is, she had so many things in mind. From the nightmares she couldn't remember to the reason why someone would break all the mirror in the fun house.

"You'll spoil your lunch if eat now, you two." Aerith giggled, putting aside a bag filled with broken glass—which was quickly taken away by the magic brooms.

The brunette turned to the young woman. "It's only a little snack Aerith! Besides, with all the work we're going to do, we're going to get hungry by lunch time!" she said as she walked backwards to where the stall Yuffie ran off to.

Hikari suddenly bumped into someone. "Ups! Sorry—"

The blond man stared down at the girl, shaking his head. "Wouldn't hurt to try and listen for once." He said as he crossed his arms.

The brunette groaned, giving a look. "Oh c'mon, Cloud! It's only a little snack. It's cotton candy!" she gestured her hands to the colorful puff of clouds on a stick. "I mean—No one could resist it, who could resist the sweet puffs of sweetness?!" she huffed out childishly.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Yeah, me." He retorted.

Hikari gave the blond a deadpan look.

"Pfft, Cloud just doesn't have a sweet tooth like us." Yuffie came back with a pair of cotton candy, giving one to Hikari.

"Thank goodness for that." Cloud muttered under his breath. When they first got to Disney Town, the two girls were already stuffing their face with sweet. It took Leon's threats and Aerith's advices to make the girls stop eating so many sweets. "Looking at you two is enough." He said as he glanced over to Yuffie's pink cotton candy to Hikari's blue one.

"How about you try some?" Hikari offered her candy to the man. She grinned when she saw Cloud eyeing the treat with skeptical eyes. "C'mon, just because it's blue doesn't mean it taste bad! If you eat it, you would feel like dancing high-up on the clouds." She sniggered.

There was a moment of silence between the three.

Yuffie burst out laughing. "Was that a pun?"

Cloud's left eye twitched before he pinched Hikari's nose. "No wonder you act like this. You haven't return to the ground yet." He retorted as he released Hikari's nose and crossed his arms.

The brunette held her nose as she glared at the blond. "Oh, haha." She laughed dryly. "Very funny…" she ripped a part of the blue cotton candy before stuffing it in her mouth.

"Just remember that we're still on the job." Cloud pinched a piece from Hikari's cotton candy and walked away to the direction of the entrance.

Yuffie laughed when the blond was out of earshot. "That guy is turning to another Leon, I swear."

"At least, that means more talking and less tongue click and grunting in reply." Hikari said, staring at her blue cotton candy. Cloud was more social than when she first met him—that's for sure. She remembered the first day on the job in the committee, all Cloud do after the mission was go into his room and not come out until he was called down for dinner. Now, after his rounds were done, he would sit in the main room and keep quiet unless he wanted to. "That's an improvement."

"You got that right." The black-haired girl nodded her head, stuffing her face into the pink cotton candy.

Hikari took her time in eating the sweet treat.

A pair of finger were snapped right in front of her eyes to gain her attention.

The brunette blinked and followed the arm to Yuffie. "Girl, I've been trying to get your attention for the past minute! Did that cotton candy really took you to the clouds?" she crossed her arms, the empty stick of cotton candy in her hand.

"Sorry…" Hikari apologized sheepishly.

Yuffie sighed before a smile replaced her small frown. "No matter, we should hurry up before Squall 1 and Squall 2 lecture us again." she said referring the second one to Cloud. She handed the girl a bottle of water when she finished eating her treat. "Well, let's go~!" she sang happily as she ran towards the entrance.

Hikari twist the cap open before drinking the water to get rid of the sweet taste off her tongue. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and tossed the empty bottle and stick into the trashcan on her way to the entrance of the Mystery Manor. The brunette went through the different play rooms that were deactivated for repairs of the Mirror Maze. She smiled in remembrance before shaking the memory away.

"Took you long enough." Leon commented as he picked up a broken piece of glass and placed it in the black rubber bag. "I hope with all that sweets you had, you'll have twice the energy to work." He said.

Hikari stick her tongue out at him. "Sugar Rush isn't a thing." She said as she pulled out the safety gloves, putting them on before she helped Aerith.

"Just look at Yuffie." Leon motioned his head to the hyperactive ninja who seemed to be jumping around to clean up the maze.

"I can hold my sweets." Hikari gave a proud look as Aerith giggled.

Leon shook his head, a small smile on his lips.

The brunette continued picking up the broken pieces of glass to put them inside the bag beside her.

The magic brooms weren't that much of a help—their job now was to help the committee sweep the broken glass to one spot and take away the bag when they finished collecting the pieces. Only after the whole maze is cleaned up, Merlin would use his magic to replace all those broken mirrors with new ones and then it was the committee's job to help polish and set everything to their original place.

Hikari picked up a piece of glass, staring at her reflection, sighing deeply.

If only she had taken Roxas and Xion sooner—they would've learn of their past by now.

 _It's your fault_

The brunette blinked. She glanced around spotting each member of the committee busy with their jobs.

 _You're the cause of everything_

She looked down to the piece of glass in her hand, examining it. She moved it to reflect the light from the ceiling before looking at it again.

 _You're nothing without me_

Her eyes widened when she saw a single gold-yellow eye staring back at her.

 _You've hurt them more than once_

Memories of her friends flashed right before her eyes.

 _Don't you see?_

 _We're the same_

 _ **W**_ e _aR_ e _O_ _ **N**_ _e_

 _Crash_

"…Hikari?" Aerith stared at the young girl in shock when she heard the sound of glass being broken to pieces. She turned to look at the source, finding the youngest of the committee members hunched over a pile of broken glass. Her hair covered her face and her shoulders were shaking. The young woman quickly went over to the girl, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. She was even more surprised that the girl flinched at her touch. "Is… everything alright?" she asked softy.

Hikari stopped shaking and raised her head, a sheepish grin on her face. "Hahaha! Sorry 'bout that, Aerith! My hand slipped." She apologized.

Aerith stared worriedly at the young girl. She was certain that it wasn't the case.

"Geez, Hikari! No need to add more bad luck!" Yuffie commented from where she stood, her hands on her hips as she gave a teasing smile.

"Sorry, sorry!" Hikari apologized again, her hand behind her neck. She remembered who that eye belonged to and how could she just recognize the voice now? She should've recognized the voice days ago when she first heard it. She looked around and the whole committee were staring at her. "Sorry… I really thought there was a roach or something." She apologized once more.

Cloud crossed his arms. "Really now?"

"Really." Hikari replied, turning to face him.

"I doubt it." Leon added. "You were staring at the mirror. Don't lie to us."

Aerith nodded her head in agreement. "You were shaking. What really happened?" she asked, embracing the girl in a side hug.

Hikari looked away, uncertain of how she should explain it. "Nothing…really… just…" she trailed off, her eyes looking around to the three other committee members. She eyes landed on the figure standing behind Leon. A muscular boy—shorter than Leon and Cloud was standing there, watching. She rubbed her eyes with her hands and the moment she opened her eyes again, the boy was gone. "…a nightmare." She finished.

"A nightmare? In broad daylight?" Yuffie tilted her head in confusion.

"Yuffie." Cloud turned to face the black-haired girl, giving a look. He turned to look at the brunette. "Perhaps, this will be a good time to take a break." He announced.

Leon nodding his head. "Agreed."

Aerith helped Hikari up and walked with her to the exit.

The keyblade wielder glanced over her shoulder, looking at the committee members. Her blue eyes caught the figure again, a grin on his face. His lips didn't move, but she could hear what he said perfectly.

 _You can't escape me,_

 _Sunshine_.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari drank the refreshing barley tea Aerith gave her.

The committee were sitting on one of the picnic tables provided for the festival. A large umbrella was there to give them shade from the sunlight. It was easy to tell the committee apart from the residents of Disney Town. They ate in silence as the atmosphere was still a little heavy from the way Hikari reached to the broken mirrors.

"So…." Yuffie drawled out, her eyes darting from left to right. "Any ideas what we should do after cleaning up?" she grinned as she tried to lighten the mood.

The brunette turned to look at the girl sitting beside her. "I'm still up for that Fruitball challenge." She was glad that Yuffie could change the subject. The atmosphere around them was getting uncomfortable. "What? Don't tell me that you're backing out on the challenge? Backing out means your forfeit and—"

"HAH! Get real!" Yuffie cuts her off, standing up in her seat. She pointed her finger at the brunette sitting beside her, a determined look across her face. "I'm going to be the only one who will have the full course meal!" she shouted.

Leon glared at the girl. "Yuffie, sit down! You're catching unwanted attention!" he hissed quietly, scolding the girl to go back to her seat.

"Aren't we already?" Cloud remarked.

"Aren't you the smart one, Strife." Leon sighed, leaning back in his seat.

Cloud took a sip from his drink. "So glad you've noticed, Leonhart."

Hikari sniggered behind her hand.

Half an hour later, everybody was back inside the Mirror Maze, cleaning up the last bit of broken glass. By 2 pm, because of Merlin's magic, all of the empty spaces were replaced with brand new mirror—including a replica of the Enchanted Mirror. Though there was no more magic inside the mirror, it still creates the thrill to find the mirror in the maze. The committee finally finished cleaning up and was ready to reopen the Mystery Manor just before the announcement of the Million Dreams Award.

The whole committee—including Cid—were gathered around the main plaza courtesy of Clarabelle who insisted that they head over to see the main event.

"Hello everyone and thank you for waiting." Minnie walked into the center of the stage with Daisy following right behind her. Everyone quieted down at the sight of their Queen walking into the stage. The Queen glanced around, looking at the faces of her people. She spotted the committee standing at the back of the crowd. She saw the youngest of the committee waving her hand in greeting and the Queen couldn't help but giggle and return the gesture. "Now, it's time to begin the main event of our Dream Festival, the Million Dreams Award presentation." She said and there was a round of applause.

"This year, we have multiple winners." Minnie smiled and another round of applause was heard. "The Million Dreams Award goes to the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee!" she clapped her hands.

There were cheers and applauses going on right after Minnie announced the winners, followed by confetti being throw around the group.

"Wait—what?" Yuffie was the first one who snapped out of her surprise. "We won? We _won_?" she repeated, asking the other members.

"Apparently… we did." Hikari was just as surprised as Yuffie is.

Minnie giggled. "Would the winners please come up and join me on the stage?" She said.

It took both Yuffie and Hikari to drag Leon and Cloud to the stage. Cid didn't need a confident boost as he was already confident. Cid, Aerith and Merlin walked right behind the two girls who were forcefully pushing Leon's and Cloud's back to the stage. The committee lined up on the stage with Leon representing them.

"Thank you, Your Highness." Leon went down to one knee, bowing his head in respect and thanks.

"Raise your head, Leon. There's no need for that." Minnie smiled and she took the banquet of flowers from Daisy's hands to give it to the young man. "You all have been very kind and helpful to everyone. All of you deserved it." She said, glancing over to the rest of the committee.

The queen turned back to Daisy who was now holding a tray of small medals. "I hereby present the Million Dreams Award as a token of how much you mattered to us." She placed the small medal around each of the committee's neck.

Everyone clapped their hands.

Hikari held the small medal hung by the ribbon around her neck. She stared at the small medal. It wasn't anything fancy. Just a star crafted on the surface of the medal with the words of 'Million Dreams Award' above it.

 _We don't deserve it_

* * *

 _Clang_

In each swing she gave, her attacks were blocked by the very same weapon she used.

 _Swoosh_

"Ack—!" Hikari's keyblade was knocked out of her grasp. It landed a few feet away from her. She turned her attention to her opponent and quickly sidestepped to the right to avoid an attack. She dodged a few more attacks as she tries to find an opening. Once she found it, she quickly dashed towards where her keyblade had landed. Her hand reached out to grab the weapon, but someone had already beat her to it. "Oh—c'mon!" an exasperated sigh escaped her lips.

The spar didn't last long.

Riku smirked. "Better luck next time, Hikari." he summoned his keyblade away when Hikari admitted defeat.

Hikari sat down, leaning back to lay on the ground. "Great… defeated by an old man…" She huffed out in a joking manner. She opened a single eye to look at the expression Riku had on his face. It was hard to tell his expression because of the blindfold, but she could still see how his eyebrows and lips move to know what he was expressing. "Who's also wearing a blindfold at that…" she added.

The silver-haired teen crossed his arms. "I don't know if I should be offended that you called me old, or if I should be beaming with pride because you admit that I can beat you even with a blindfold on."

Hikari grinned in reply.

"Well either way," Riku shook his head, a smile on his lips. He took Hikari's keyblade and offered his hand for her to take. "You're improving. That's great." He complimented as Hikari took his hand.

The brunette gave Riku a strange look, taking the keyblade back from his hand. "Who are you and what have you done to Riku?" she deadpanned and received a slap to the back of her head for it. She rubbed the spot where Riku had hit her and gave the teen a dirty look. "What? It's not every day I hear you complimenting on my skills." She said as she summoned her keyblade away.

Riku smirked. "Oh, so, you want me to say that you suck and have no skills at all?" he crossed his arms, staring down at his friend who gave him an offended look.

"H—Hey! I didn't mean it like that!" Hikari huffed out childishly.

A laugh escaped Riku's lips, "Relax, will you?" He ruffled Hikari's hair before walking back towards the mansion. They had used the garden overgrown by weeds for their training ground. It was the perfect place to spar. The courtyard has too many rocks and inside the mansion is a big no because of how old the mansion is. "You're taking things too seriously now. Is this a part of growing up?" He said as Hikari walked beside him.

Hikari crossed her hands behind her head. "I can't help it! You were the serious one… everyone takes the serious one seriously…" she reasoned, making up an excuse.

Truly, the one who sometimes can't take a joke was her. She sometimes takes things too seriously to the point where she will be too stubborn for her own good. "…but seriously, you were just joking, right?" she eyed her friend skeptically.

Riku stopped walking, making the brunette stop as well.

He turned to face her, a small frown on his face. "What makes you think that I would actually say that?" he asked.

The brunette blinked and shrugged. "I… dunno… I just feel like—it's hard to explain actually." She sighed, rubbing the back of her neck.

She knew that Riku would never ever say that she has no skills or whatsoever. Why did she even think about those negative things Riku never said to her in the first place?

"Kind of like… um—I feel like everyone's better than me at anything…" she tried her best to explain her emotion to him.

 _So, you finally accepted it?_

"…Hikari," Riku stared at his friend. "… are you in that phase?"

"What?" Hikari gave him a look. "What phase?"

Riku chuckled. "That teenager phase. The time when you feel so insecure—"

"I'm not insecure!" Hikari interjected, a pout on her lips.

"Of course, you're not." before Hikari could even retort, he placed his hands on her shoulders. The brunette closed her mouth and raised her chin up to look at her friend. "But either way, don't let anything push you down. If someone pushed you down, show them that you can rise and do it. Prove them wrong. That Hikari, is the _Hikari_ I know." he gave a smile, giving her shoulders a reassuring squeeze.

Hikari looked down, the corners of her lips twitching up to a smile.

"Thanks, Riku."

Riku patted her head, a smile on his face. "C'mon, let's go see what Naminé is up to." He said as he made his way towards the glass door.

Hikari stared at his back. _'All Naminé ever do is sit in her room or in the computer room all day…'_ she frowned a little. A few seconds later, her expression brightened—an idea in mind. "Hey, Riku! Can I ask you something?" she jogged over, catching up with the silver-haired teen.

"You just asked me one, but sure." Riku said, turning his head to face the girl.

A grin made its way up to her face.

"I need a favor."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Naminé!"

Naminé almost jumped when the door burst open and a certain brunette came running in the room. Her black coat clashed with the white contrast of the room, making it easy to keep an eye on her as she went around the room. She went over to the drawers, pulling out the bottom drawer to take out a spare blue jacket. She held it up before turning to look at the blonde.

"Wear this!" Hikari said, making her way closer to the Nobody.

Naminé stared at the jacket in her hands, a sad smile across her lips. "Hikari… I know what you're thinking. I can't—"

"Of course you can!" Hikari cuts in, her hands on her hips. "DiZ is always in the computer room and he never comes in here anyway. He won't even notice that you'll be gone for a couple of hours." She grinned, placing her hand on the girl's shoulder.

Naminé looked down, still looking unsure whether she should listen to Hikari or not. Sure, the brunette meant good, but at the same time, it was a risk for someone like her to be out in public when the Organization are looking for her.

Hikari saw the look across the girl's face. "Naminé," She raised both her hands, placing them on the Nobody's shoulders. Her blue eyes met the Nobody's unsure gaze as they stared back. "Do you trust me?"

"Of course." Naminé answered, nodding her head once.

The brunette smiled, "Then trust me that everything will be okay. I promise I'll be with you all the time." She said, her hands still on the blonde's shoulders. "I promise, _promise_ to protect you. I won't let the Organization even near you." She reassured, giving the girl's shoulders one last squeeze.

Naminé looked down to the jacket in her arms.

"And hey, if you're still that worried, I already talked to Riku about this and he agreed!" Hikari gave a short laugh as Naminé stared at her with a disbelief look. It was unbelievable that someone like Riku would've agreed with a plan like this, but the young teen manage to convinced him otherwise. "I don't know why he agreed so easily, but he agreed! That's a plus, right?"

Naminé couldn't help but smile at the brunette's antics. She was always trying to find a way to make her friends happy. She would do whatever it takes to put a smile on people's face.

Hikari probably thought that Naminé wanted to go out once in a while.

The Nobody knew that staying in the mansion was the best option until her brother's memories are restored, but she also wanted to make the young teen happy. She had done so much for her and now, she wanted to return the kindness.

A smile was seen on the blonde's lips. "Okay, let's go." She said, putting the jacket on.

The look on Hikari's face brightened. "Awesome! Where do you wanna go first? We can take the Star Shard to go to any place you want! Do you wanna go shopping? Or sightseeing? I know a great place where you can shop! Agrabah has some cool stuff! Oh, oh! How about Disney Town? Or do you want to explore a new world—," her rambling was cut short when she heard a giggle.

Naminé hid her giggle behind her curled hand. "Someone is excited."

Hikari grinned sheepishly. "S—Sorry, I got carried away." She apologized, rubbing the back of her neck. "So, where to first?"

"You can decide for me. Anywhere is fine as long as you're there with me." Naminé replied, folding her hands neatly.

The brunette blinked before a faint blush spread across her cheeks. "O—Oh! Well…." She trailed off, a little embarrassed. She placed her hand on her chin as she tried to come up with an idea. She wanted Naminé to enjoy her day off and have fun just like regular teenagers. For the past few months that she spends with the Nobody, she figured out that the girl likes to draw a lot—along with drinking tea with the three fairies. _'Come to think of it… I don't know what Naminé likes to do other than drawing and having tea…'_ she thought, glancing over to the girl.

At the look Hikari was giving, a giggle escaped Naminé's lips. "How about we spend the day around Twilight Town? I never got the chance to explore." she suggested.

"Twilight Town?" Hikari asked once more to confirm. At the nod Naminé gave, a grin made its way up to her lips. "Alrighty then! A date in Twilight Town it is!"

The brunette went over to the door and peeked out, glancing left and right to see if anyone was around. She smiled to herself and opened the door fully, letting Naminé out first before closing the door as quietly as possible. The two girls sneaked down the flight of stairs before reaching the foyer.

Hikari tip-toed over to the main door while Naminé walked calmly behind her. The brunette looked around once more, a suspicious look across her face when everything went according to her plans way too perfectly. She shook the feelings away and opened the main door—letting her friend go through first before her.

"Alright, Naminé! Are you ready?" Hikari said, turning to face the blonde after closing the door.

Naminé smiled. "Ready."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Follow them, Riku."

Riku almost— _almost_ —lost his balance when he heard DiZ gave him an order. It only had been ten minutes after Hikari managed to convince him to help her with her _amazing_ plan—which included taking a certain Nobody out on an important date. He knew Hikari never consulted DiZ with her idea and just thought it up the moment she spoke with him, but he was willing to go with it. He didn't tell DiZ what his friend was up to. He just walked into the room casually and tried to act like nothing happened, but apparently, the man seemed to caught on.

"Pardon?" Riku tried to at least stall, his arms crossed.

A sigh was heard before something was thrown at his way.

Riku caught the small device with ease. "What's this?" he asked, taking a good look at the small device. It was black with a small monitor. He stared at the blinking dot. He knew what the device was for.

"You know what it's for." DiZ answered without looking back, his eyes stared at the bright monitor—watching the blinking dot. "I predicted something like this would happen. To prevent it, I have placed on tracking devices on her cloak." He continued.

The silver-haired teen frowned. "Do you really not trust her that much?"

"You and I both know that it is for the best." DiZ replied, turning to look at the boy.

Riku stared at DiZ's eye through the blindfold. He wanted to let Hikari and Naminé enjoy their day—but on the other hand, he was also worried for them both. He believed that Hikari could handle herself and defend Naminé at the same time. She went through Castle Oblivion _alone_ and survived the craziness that was going on. Then again, she stood no chance if she were to face three to four Organization members.

The silver-haired teen sighed, tightening his hold on the small device.

"Can't. I made a promise." Riku tossed the device back, his eyebrows furrowed down as he made himself clear. "I promised Hikari and I'm not going to break any promises to her again." He said calmly.

DiZ caught the device and stared at the item. "Very well." He said, turning to look at the monitors again. His eyes glanced over to the dot on one of the monitors. "Do as you please." He added.

Riku took a deep breath before turning away, walking out of the dark room.

"But Riku, do consider," the boy stopped and waited for the bandaged man to continue. "If the both of them are caught by the Organization, they will use them against you."

Riku stayed quiet.

"What would you do then?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Awww! How are you doing this?!" Hikari shouted as she slumped her shoulders in defeat.

It had been a few hours since she took Naminé out for a date. She had taken her out to the explore the town. Even to visit the other district of the town, Sunset Terrace. It had been a fun day for the both of them. After visiting the art supply shop, Hikari thought it would be a good idea to introduce the Nobody to video games. The brunette took her to the arcade and made Naminé play one of the shooting games.

"It's like you have a talent for it." Hikari commented as she stared at Naminé's high score. Her score was lower than the new gamer, but nevertheless, she was happy that she could take Naminé out.

The blonde giggled as she placed the plastic gun on the holder. "I think I have a hidden talent."

Hikari laughed before placing the plastic gun down and took the plastic bag full of art supplies up from the floor. "Well, shall we move on to the next game?" she gesture, pointing her finger to the crane game.

Naminé smiled.

"Oh? If it isn't Hikari!" a cheerful voice stopped the two girls from moving. Hikari blinked and saw that it was Hayner's gang. She grinned and waved her hand in greeting. "It's been awhile! How have you been?" the shortest of the three greeted.

"Great! And you guys?" Hikari asked back as the group huddled closer.

"Terrible… School's killing us." Hayner whined, slumping his shoulders tiredly.

Olette giggled behind her hand. "It's not that bad." She replied.

"To you… but to us two… Biology test on Wednesday, Chemistry report on Thursday and Math test on Friday!" Hayne cried into his hands as he and Pence shared the same look across their face.

Hikari cringed at the amount of school world Hayner, Pence and Olette has to do. "Good luck with that…" she said, patting Pence's back.

"Thank you," Olette smiled. Her green eyes glanced over to the blonde girl hiding behind the brunette. "Oh! I'm sorry, I believe we haven't introduced ourselves. I'm Olette, it's nice to meet you!" she introduced.

Hayner instantly brightened. "Hayner!"

"And I'm Pence!"

Naminé smiled and nodded her head in greeting. "Naminé. It a pleasure to meet all of you." She said in a soft voice.

"We were just heading out to grab ice cream when we found you, you girls wanna join us?" Hayner offered as he threw his thumb over his shoulder, gesturing to the ice cream shop across the street.

Hikari turned to face Naminé who nodded her head.

"We would love to." Naminé answered, smiling.

Hayner grinned as he turned around to exit the arcade. "Great! Let's go head over to the shop and after that we'll show you where we usually eat our ice cream!" Olette and Pence followed after their friend with Naminé and Hikari a little big behind them.

Hikari smiled at the way the three friends treated Naminé. Right after they got their ice cream, the trio took the two girls to their hang-out spot in the back alley. It was cozy to say. They were all seated around the room, talking random things to one and another, sharing their stories. At first, the brunette was worried that Naminé might be questioned of her past, but it was never brought up.

The keyblade wielder just sat there, listening to their stories.

 _You're not needed here_

Hikari's eyes widened when she heard the voice again.

"Hikari?" Naminé's voice brought her back to reality.

The brunette looked around the room, staring at the curious looks she was receiving.

"Sorry! Just a little brain freeze." Hikari laughed sheepishly, waving the uneasy feeling at the pit of her stomach away. She took one last bite to finish her ice cream and cringed at the way the frozen treat melts in her mouth. She held the side of her head. "Urrrggghhh… brain freeze."

Hayner let a snigger passed his lips. "Maybe you shouldn't bite into your ice cream, take your time." he waved the ice cream up and down.

"Thanks for the advice." Hikari muttered, rubbing her temples.

"Anytime."

Naminé stared worriedly at the brunette before turning to face the three friends. "It's getting late, we should be heading back now." She said as she stood up, folding her hand neatly in front of her. "Thank you all so much for spending the day with us."

Olette also stood up. "Thank you too, Naminé! Hope we can hang out again soon!" she held Naminé's hands in her own, smiling.

"Before you go, let's take a picture!" Pence pulled out his camera.

Hikari blinked before taking out a camera of her own. "Me too!"

Pence held the camera as far as he can with the lens facing them. In a second, he pressed the shutter with a click. After that, both Pence and Hikari switch places to take picture.

"These are awesome!" Pence stared at the pictures their camera took.

Hikari also did the same. "Now, we all have something to remember each other by!" she said, holding the two different copies of the photo. One was taken by Pence's camera and the other by hers. She pocketed the two pictures and put her camera away. "Thanks for having us guys!" she said, waving goodbye to the trio as the two girls exited the room.

"Don't be a stranger and visit us soon!" Olette said.

"Next time, let's play a game of Struggle!"

"Hey, how about going on a mystery adventure next time?"

"Sure thing! See ya guys later!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari glanced left and right inside the empty mansion. She sighed in relief when there was no DiZ in sight. She opened the door fully and let Naminé in.

"It is nice of you to finally return."

The brunette flinched when she heard the deep voice. She stiffly turned to face the bandaged man walking out of the shadows to reveal himself to the two girls. The keyblade wielder stood in front of the Nobody, hiding her from the man's cold gaze.

"…It's uh… good to see you too, DiZ?" Hikari laughed sheepishly, flashing him one of her most convincing smile she could muster.

DiZ's gaze moved to the blonde Nobody and at the silent gaze he was giving, the Nobody knew what she has to do next.

Naminé dipped her head down as she made her way up the stairs and into her room. Once the two of them heard the door of Naminé room was closed, DiZ returned his stern and disapproving look at the brunette.

"You should've known better than to take that Witch out." DiZ said, his hands behind his back.

Hikari frowned deeply. "Naminé's not a witch and she deserve to go out once in a while." she furrowed her eyebrows, giving a slight glare to the man.

"Have you not known what your actions might have caused, little girl?" The bandaged man returned the look, walking closer to the girl.

The brunette looked down. The Organization could've gotten to either her or Naminé. She knows that, but that doesn't mean she would actually let Naminé spend the rest of her life locked up in that room.

"I won't let the Organization get Naminé. I promised to protect her." Hikari announced, lifting her chin back up to look at the man, a confident look across her face.

DiZ stopped right beside her, staring at her eyes. "Very well. I will let it slide, but there will not be a next time." he said as he made his way to the stairs that leads to the library. The man stopped right in front of the door. "Do I make myself clear?" he said sternly.

"Loud and clear."

 _Slam_

Hikari let out the sigh she had been holding the whole time. She rubbed the back of her head before heading towards Naminé's room. She opened the door to the room and found a silver-haired boy standing right beside the blonde girl.

"You know… DiZ might not show it, but he's actually pretty mad." Riku said as he walked around the table to reach his friend.

The brunette snorted. "Don't you think I noticed?" she crossed her arms before turning her head to look at the blonde sitting on the chair. Her gaze softened as she approached the girl. "But it was definitely worth it." She grinned, staring down at the pictures on the table.

Naminé raised her head up.

"I've told you before, today's the day when you can have fun and enjoy yourself! So, don't make that face, kay?" Hikari pinched the both of Naminé's cheeks into a smile. She released her hold a few seconds later, a grin on her face. "It's Naminé Day today~! I'll be sure to make you smile till the end of the day!" she said in determination.

The blonde and silver-haired teen exchanged looks before a chuckle slipped pass—making the brunette frown and crossed her arms as she gave a confused look.

"What? What's so funny?" Hikari huffed out.

"Today's not only _Naminé Day_. Take a guess." Riku crossed his arms, an amused smile across his lips.

Hikari's eyes darted around the room, trying to figure out what day was it. It clearly wasn't New Year or Christmas, that's for sure. It wasn't Halloween or Thanksgiving either. Mother's Day has already passed and Easter was months ago. She hummed as she placed a hand on her chin and tapped her foot on the floor a couple of times as she tried to remember what she missed.

"It's… uh… our best friend anniversary?"

Riku laughed. "You dummy, it's your birthday!"

"Happy birthday!"

The brunette blinked a few times. "It… is?"

Naminé nodded her head. "Don't tell us that you've forgotten your own birthday?" she giggled, standing up from her seat.

Hikari rubbed the back of her neck, giving a sheepish laugh. With all that's been going on, she wasn't keeping track of days anymore. It had been awhile since she wrote something on her Scrapbook Diary and every day was the same activity so she never check the calendar anymore—she has Leon for that to keep reminding her what to do.

"I… guess it must've slipped my mind." The brunette laughed.

"You're the only person who would forget her own birthday." Riku teased, locking Hikari's head under his arm for a noogie. "How does it feel? To be fourteen?"

Hikari pushed herself out of Riku's hold, laughing as she combed her hair with her fingers. It didn't feel any different to tell the truth. For her, she was a year older—and another year without any luck in finding her three friends. She was so close and yet she was still so far away to save all three of her childhood friends. To add things more worse—this was her first time celebrating her birthday without her family. It felt odd not receiving birthday wishes from her own family.

"I still feel the same." Hikari answered.

"I'm sorry we don't have a cake and candles to celebrate." Naminé apologized.

The brunette shook her head. "Just wishes from you guys are enough!" she smiled.

Riku smirked as he pulled out a small box. "Then I guess you wouldn't want your present, huh?" he held out the small box tied with a red ribbon for the girl in front of him to take. He watched as the brunette pulled on one end of the ribbon, taking it off before opening the box. He saw how the brunette stared at the item inside the box. "It's… not that fancy and expensive—but we all pitched in to buy the materials and made it into a charm. Naminé did all the sewing—we're not good with those." He said.

Hikari held up the charm. It was made from red string with one side bent into a loop. It has seven beads in total. Two blue beads, a green, a yellow, and two white beads. The last one was bigger than the others, it was a purple bead engraved with a five-pointed star.

"Sorry if we can't get you anything expensive." Riku apologized.

The brunette smiled as she put the charm back into the box and pocketed the gift. "No, it's perfect!" the girl jumped at her two friends, pulling them in a hug. "Homemade gifts are the best! Thank you, guys!"

Naminé placed her hand on the brunette's back. "I'm glad you liked your gift."

 _Enjoy it while you can_

 _Before I crush it again_

Hikari's hold around Riku and Naminé tightened a little. _'Not even in your dreams.'_ She replied in her mind before releasing the two from her hug. "Thank you, guys, again. I really, really love it." She sniffled.

Riku ruffled Hikari's hair. "I have to go now. I'll see you later, okay?" he said as he made his way to the door. "Happy birthday, Hikari…" he wished one last time to the girl.

The brunette stared at the door, a smile on her face. She turned around to face Naminé only to find the girl staring at the pictures on the table. It was a picture of themselves with Hayner, Pence and Olette from Pence's camera and her camera.

"It's… a shame I would have to erase Hayner, Pence and Olette's memories of me…" the Nobody said quietly, but Hikari heard her. "It's for the best. No one must know who I am." She said, staring back down at the two photos on the table.

Hikari pursed her lips, balling her hands up into fists. It wasn't fair that Naminé had to erase Hayner, Pence and Olette's memories of her. She finally made friends besides Riku and herself and now she had to erase her new friends' memories, all because she is a Nobody. While the brunette knows that if the trio know of Naminé's existence, the easier it will be for the Organization to find them, but at the same time, she wanted people to remember Naminé.

"Then, erase their memories of me hanging out with them too." Hikari said, placing her hand on the blonde's shoulder, making her turn her head. "I mean, it's only fair, right? I don't mind at all."

Naminé stared at Hikari before looking at the pictures.

"Next time, when we hang out with them again, let's keep those memories forever, alright?" Hikari winked a grin plastered on her face. "Hey, when this is all over, let's go out again. What do you say?"

Naminé giggled. "That would be lovely."

 _There is no such thing as a happy ending_

 _It doesn't exist, especially for you or me_

Hikari's grin suddenly faltered and a frown appeared as she looked at the floor, her eyebrows furrowed down.

Naminé folded her hands in front of her chest as she stared at the brunette's face. "Something's bothering you, Hikari." she said, raising her gaze up to meet the brunette's surprised look.

Hikari looked away, sighing. "You knew?"

The blonde nodded. "How long has this been going on?"

"…even since I went through the Dark Corridors without the cloak again." Hikari admitted, shame written across her face. "Just… what's that guy to me anyway? Why is he always trying to put me down? As far as I remember, I never did anything to him—it's the other way around really." she sighed, taking out the small gift from her pocket.

"…I don't think it's time for you to know." Naminé gave her a sad smile, holding the girl's hand, making her look with a tired look. "But I can make the nightmares stop." She said, placing her hand on the side of Hikari's head.

Hikari closed her eyes and the two girls stayed silent.

A few minutes passed and Hikari opened her eyes when she felt Naminé's hand was no longer on the side of her head to look at the smile the Nobody was giving to her.

"My gift to you."

The brunette closed her eyes again.

"Happy birthday, Hikari."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was in the afternoon when Hikari returned to Hollow Bastion. After Naminé's gift to her, her tiredness and uneasiness suddenly went away. She could think clearly again and there was no voice that was trying to lower her down. She stared at the darkening sky, she could actually get some sleep tonight.

The brunette stretched her arms above her head, flexing her sore muscles. When she reached the door, she stopped. It was unusually quiet. She pressed her ear against the wooden door, trying to hear what was going on inside. Usually, at this time, she could hear Yuffie's loud voice from outside the door. Did something happen to the committee while she was away?

Hikari pushed the door open. She peaked her head inside the house. It was pitch black aside from the light that came from outside the door.

"Guys—"

There was a loud pop and the lights turned on.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

"!"

The brunette stood there in front of the door in shock when streamers and confetti fell down on her head. She stared at the sight with wide eyes and a surprise look across her face.

"Wha—?" Hikari finally opened her mouth.

"It's a surprise party, silly!" Yuffie giggled as she approached the younger girl. She wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulder, pushing her down a little. The black-haired girl caught the look Hikari gave her. "What? You think that we don't know, huh?" she smirked when she pointed her thumb to the wizard dressed in blue.

Aerith smiled as she put away the used party popper away. "Merlin told us that it's your birthday today." She claps her hands together, giggling.

Hikari turned to face the wizard.

"Celebrating with friends is better than spending your birthday alone, my dear." Merlin chuckled.

The brunette smiled in return, glancing around the room to look at the committee members. Every member was there—even Cloud, who doesn't seem to be the type to come to birthday parties. She never even though of celebrating her fourteenth birthday because she was so far away from her family. She looked down as she sniffled, trying to hold back the tears of joy from coming out."

"Awwww! You're crying!" Yuffie teased, poking Hikari's cheek as she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand.

Hikari laughed, "Am not!" she pulled herself out from Yuffie's hold and grinned. "Thanks guys, but you guys don't have to throw a party like this."

"Kiddo, we're family now, there's no way we're just going to look over your birthday." Cid said from where he stood, his arms crossed and a grin on his face.

Leon nodded his head in agreement. "Though we're sorry that we planned this in the last minute." He rubbed the back of his neck. "We just knew this morning, right after you left."

Yuffie smack's Leon's upper arm. "She doesn't need to know that, you Party Pooper!" she glared at the taller man.

Hikari smiled as she stared around the small house. It was decorated with a few balloons and streamers. It wasn't anything fancy at all. She was sure that Merlin would've zapped something fancier, but this kind of party was what matters to her the most. The effort the committee put into to even think of setting up a last-minute party is enough for her.

"No problem. I like a small party."

"It just so happens that your birthday is not far from this stick in the mud." Yuffie suddenly said as she pointed both her fingers to the blond standing beside the table.

The brunette blinked at the information. "Really?"

Cloud looked away, his arms crossed.

"This guy's just shy when someone throws him a party. So, he kept quiet until Merlin told us too—" Yuffie laughed before she received a slap to the back of her head. "Ow! HEY!" She rubbed the spot where Cloud had hit her, glaring at said man.

"Then let's celebrate together, if you're really shy about it—two is better than one!" Hikari laughed when she saw the surprised look across Cloud's face when she stated that she wanted to share her birthday with him. She always wanted to share her birthday. She planned to share her birthday with Ventus when she finds out that his birthday was a day away from hers. It was a shame that he didn't show up in the party.

"What?" Cloud responded, staring at the brunette.

"C'mon, sharing a birthday with me is not that bad!" Hikari huffed out, puffing her cheeks out childishly.

"…that's not the point." Cloud sighed.

Leon smirked. "How about we sing for the birthday boy and the birthday girl?" he said and Cloud flashed him a dead look.

" _Leonhart_ —"

"Not without the hat of course!" Yuffie tossed Hikari a party hat and placed one on Cloud—who silently threatened the girl with his glare. "Aw, c'mon! It's tradition! Hey, pass me your camera Hikari!"

The brunette gave the black-haired ninja her camera after she puts on the party hat.

Cloud took a step forward to the black-haired girl, attempting to grab the camera away. "Yuffie, if you even dare—" a hand on his shoulder stopped him from proceeding further. He narrowed his eyes at the brunet.

"Do it for her." Leon released his hold on the blond's shoulder as he motioned his head to the direction where Hikari is. The young girl was talking with the rest of the committee, a bright smile on her face as she accepted the birthday wishes. "This is her first birthday without her family. Think of how happy she would be if everything went along without a negative atmosphere." He continued.

The blond glanced over from Leon to the brunette. "…Fine." He sighed out, agreeing with the man.

"Say cheese you two~" Yuffie sang as she looked through the viewfinder. The brunette gave a peace sign as the blond gave the best not-bored look he could muster. "This would be perfect for—" she paused when she felt Leon took the camera away.

"No blackmailing." Leon scolded, holding the camera away from the mischievous girl.

Aerith giggled as she came out from the kitchen, a birthday cake in hand. "It's time to blow out the candles." She said as she placed the cake on the table. Cid gently pushed Hikari to go over to the table and blow out the candles. She laughed before she could feel Aerith's hands on her shoulders to guide her closer to the cake. "Make a wish you two." she smiled.

Hikari glanced over to Cloud who shrugged and closed his eyes.

The brunette quickly closed her eyes too, turning her head to the direction of the cake.

When both Cloud and Hikari opened their eyes, the two of them blew the candles out together.

The committee clapped.

"Happy birthday!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari sat on her bed, staring out the window to look at the stars shining brightly in the night sky. For some reason, the stars seemed to shined brighter tonight. The party had ended hours ago and the first one who went to bed was Yuffie, saying that she had too much cake. The girl smiled at the events that happened today, recalling everything. It may be her first birthday without her family, but it was one of the most memorable birthdays she has ever celebrated.

In her hand, she held the charm she received earlier today and the charm she got from Mickey weeks before her birthday. Though it wasn't the one Ven gave her, it was still the exact same one.

The brunette stared at the stars, a smile on her face.

00:00

 _My wish… is still the same._

 _I'll keep on wishing the same thing until it comes true._

"Happy birthday, Ven."

* * *

A/N: chapter 19 end~

I'm sorry if everything came out a little rushed… I was in a writer's block for this winter break and have been a little stressed because of tests. But anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as well!

Tell me what you think in the review! See you next chapter!


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: thank you for everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed this story~!

Oh, I'm making a new doujinshi! A spin off to Forget Me Not. It currently has two pages and a cover, but I do plan on continuing.

c-guest: hehe I'm back

stormfall: Thank you! Lol I think everyone would

lulu9814: aww thank you!

Mysterygirl145: yup, he is!

theIrishWriter: thank you!

* * *

Chapter 20  
guilt

* * *

"Happy birthday!"

Hikari blinked, staring at the box right in front of her face. She leaned back and tilted her head to look at Roxas who was offering her the gift. It wasn't that she's not grateful of the gift that the Nobody took effort in buying it for her. She was just a little confused about the whole situation. Her birthday was last week, she didn't expect anyone to wish her a happy birthday again, let alone from someone she hasn't even told her birthdate.

"Umm… thanks?" Hikari smiled sheepishly, taking the small black box from the Nobody's hand.

Roxas seem to be dejected. "You… don't like it?" he sighed, looking down as his shoulders fell.

The brunette instantly panicked. "N—No! I mean yes—uuh! I mean—thank you! Really, thank you. I don't know what it is, but thank you." she stuttered, trying to find the right words to cheer the Nobody up. She didn't mean to make him upset. "I—uh… I'm just surprised that you knew that it was my birthday." She smiled sheepishly, looking at the small black box in her hand.

Roxas raised his chin up, the dejected look was no longer on his face. "I heard it from Mr. Scrooge when I was about to buy ice cream. He asked me if I have wished you a happy birthday yet." He replied as a sincere smile curled up.

Hikari hummed. "That was like…two days ago?"

The blond nodded his head. "Yeah, and I asked Demyx about what I should do if it's someone's birthday." He said, a happy look across his face.

"And what did he say?" Hikari asked, placing the box on her lap. She was genuinely curious about what Demyx explained to Roxas about birthdays. The explanation from that particular Nobody was always funny.

Though, she did wonder where Axel went. She hasn't seen the sarcastic redhead in months since she last encountered him in Castle Oblivion when she was investigating with Mickey. The only way to know how the man is doing, is through Roxas' stories. Then again, it also had been awhile since Roxas and Xion had seen the guy. After that vacation, they both had been hanging out with her since Axel is still on his _'long-term'_ mission.

The Nobody grinned. "He said to give a present!"

"That only?" Hikari sniggered behind her hand as Roxas gave her a weird look. The brunette turned her attention back to the boy sitting beside her, the answer clearly written across the boy's face. "He didn't really explain it, huh?"

Roxas rubbed the back of his neck. "I…didn't get the chance to ask him. He was in a rush to get away from Saix." He admitted sheepishly.

"Well, he's not wrong. You give a present to someone on their birthday, but you don't always have to. You can just wish them a _happy birthday_." Hikari began, looking at the bracelet on her left hand. Turns out, the charm Riku, Naminé and Mickey gave her, could also be a bracelet—and she has been wearing it proudly around her wrist ever since she received it. She wasn't one to wear accessories, but this was exception. "It's kind of like an anniversary of the birth of a person. You'll be a year older too." she continued.

Roxas' eyebrows knitted in thought. "So… a birthday is like celebrating the day you were born?" he summarized.

The brunette blinked at the simple conclusion. "That sums it up, yeah. When's your birthday anyway?" she asked.

"I guess… in exactly 216 days?" Roxas turned to face Hikari, a smile on his face.

The look on Hikari's face was a mixture of confusion and in thought as she tried to think of the specific date. Her eyebrows knitted together and she began to count with her fingers.

Roxas laughed at her.

Hikari turned her head sharply at him when she heard his laugh. "H—Hey! I'm good at math! I just need some extra time?" she made an excuse and frowned when Roxas continued to laugh.

The Nobody held his hands up in surrender when Hikari raised her fists at him. "Sorry, sorry! It's just too funny!" his laughter subsided as he turned his head to look at the sunset behind the castle. "I've been counting since the day I was born—the day our Superior brought me to his Organization." He said.

The brunette stared at the boy's face before staring out at the castle as well. Sometimes, she wondered—would Roxas, Xion and Axel or maybe even Demyx, consider leaving the Organization? The Organization was bad news and she knew DiZ wanted to eliminate every member of the Organization. She knew that one day she would have to face them all off—but she just can't bring herself to hurt the people she became close with. She wanted to ask Roxas and Xion about it for a while, but she didn't know how to.

"Hey, Roxas—"

"It's like counting the days till we became whole again, I guess. We're working together to get our hearts back—at least that's what I've been told." Roxas turned to face Hikari and she stopped mid-sentence. She looked at him with a sympathetic and surprised look. "Axel said that I'll understand it when I get my heart back…" he said, placing a hand over his chest.

Hikari placed her hand on Roxas' shoulder. "You don't need a heart to understand it. You understand everything perfectly from the way I see." She encouraged, a grin on her lips. She knew that Nobodies don't have a heart, but so far—her friends are Nobodies and yet, they seem to have a heart. Though, if that's what Roxas and her friends want—then maybe she could put her question on hold, only after they find a way to fill the gap. "But no matter what, you're still my friend—Nobody or not."

The blonde laughed. "Thanks, Hikari." he bumped his fist on Hikari's shoulder. "Hey, open your present! We want to know if you like it or not!" he said eagerly.

"Okay, okay!" Hikari chuckled before opening the lid. She stared at the pair of stud earrings inside the box. It was black—plain and simple. She didn't know why she had been receiving a lot of accessories lately, but she didn't mind it.

"We didn't know what type you like, but we're a hundred percent positive that you don't like something flashy and shiny." Roxas explained, rubbing the back of his neck as he recalled the memory of the time he and Xion went shopping in Twilight Town to find the gift. The day when Roxas find out, was also the day he decided to tell Xion—so the very next day, they decided to shop. "The lady at Twilight Town said that those things are really in right now." He said as he pointed at the accessory.

Hikari raised her left hand and brushed it over her left ear. "Thanks, Roxas. I love it!" she turned to him and flashed a bright grin. Her ears weren't pierced and she didn't plan to get it pierced until she was older, but she didn't want to disappoint her friends. "Tell Xion, I love it! You guys have excellent taste!" she closed the box and placed it inside her pocket.

"I'm glad you liked it! Xion said that she's sorry she couldn't make it today…" Roxas' smile dropped a little, making Hikari look at him confusedly. "She had to leave early for this very important mission and won't be back until later on."

Hikari shook her head. "It's okay, maybe we can all celebrate next time. I'll treat you guys some ice cream, how about it?"

"Sounds great!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Thanks again, kupo!"

Hikari waved her hand goodbye to the Moogle. She was glad that Mog finally decided to stop making her pay an extra ten percent—he told her that it would be her birthday gift from him which she gladly accepted. Though, he did warn her if she did prank him again it would be permanent and she would have to pay twice as much.

The brunette opened the black box she picked up from Mog. _'Kinda weird that Roxas, Xion and I shared the same thought when giving someone a gift.'_ She opened the box, staring at the pair of titanium earrings she ordered.

The committee pitched in to give a little something for the both of them. She didn't want to compare the gifts she received from her friends—but Naminé's gift to her was by far the best one yet. That Vanitas boy didn't bother her again. She could sleep peacefully without the fear of waking up in the middle of the night from a nightmare.

The brunette felt bad that she didn't have a gift for Cloud when he had one for her. She thought of giving him some socks or rings, but decided against it because it was lame. She did ask what the others gave him and they answered she doesn't have to give him a gift, but she wanted to.

Then she remembered that Cloud had some sort of a wolf themed keychain for his room key and he had his ear pierced—from that the brunette came up with the idea of ordering a custom-made-earrings from Mog to match his unique keychain. It wasn't easy trying to take a picture of the keychain without Cloud noticing, but somehow with the help of Yuffie—she managed to get a good snap.

' _But I hope he likes it.'_ Hikari thought as she closed the box before shoving it inside her left pocket—the one both Roxas and Xion gave her in her right.

As always, it was around five in afternoon when she went back to Merlin's house. She was lucky that the committee members never questioned where she went during those hours—they knew that she was hanging out with someone, but they didn't pester her about _who_ that someone is.

"I'm back!" Hikari said as she entered the house. Her eyes looked around the room, finding everyone in their usual spots. Merlin was sitting on his favorite orange chair. Aerith was sitting by the table with a book in hand while Yuffie and Cloud were sitting around the table as well. Cid was right in front of the computer with Leon standing beside him, probably to discuss more about the claymore project. "Looks like nothing happened when I was away." She sniggered, her hands behind her neck.

Yuffie snorted. "Ugh, tell me about it…" she waved her hand as she leaned back against the chair to slouch. "Today's just so… boring!" she sighed dramatically.

Aerith smiled as she placed the book down. "Did you have fun?" she asked the girl.

Hikari nodded her head. "Yeah, we talked a lot and eat. He said thank you by the way." She replied, remembering what Roxas told her. Ever since Aerith knew that she has been hanging out with a mysterious friend(s), the woman had been packing snacks for them, despite not knowing who they are. "Never tasted anything like it, he said." She continued, a smile on her face.

The woman giggled behind her hand. "I'm glad he likes it." She stood up from her seat, walking to the kitchen. "We're eating out tonight. Would you like some barley tea for now?" the younger girl nodded in reply.

Hikari turned to the blond man. "Hey, Cloud." She called out as she walked closer to him. The man replied with a hum, turning his head to look at the girl. She pulled the box with the titanium earrings she bought and holding it out for the man to take. When he just stared at the box and didn't take it, she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "It's sorta late and all, but happy birthday. I hope you like it." She grinned.

Yuffie almost jumped out of her seat. "Oooooohhh! Take it, Cloud! Take it!" she encouraged, staring at the little box with excitement.

Cloud gave Yuffie an annoyed look, but took the box anyway. "Thanks…" he mumbled and the brunette's face brightened.

The black-haired girl crossed her arms. "Well? Aren't you going to open it?" she pestered, her hand on her hips.

Cloud gave her a look before sighing. The box wasn't wrapped in any paper or decorated with ribbons. From what he could tell, it was probably a ring that was bought from Mog. He opened the box, staring at the content with a raised eyebrow.

"I thought about getting you a ring or socks or something, but I figured you won't like it…" Hikari laughed as she took a seat, still staring at the blond man's expression as he kept on staring at the earrings. "Then I saw that you have this wolf looking keychain, so I asked Yuffie to help me get a picture of it for Mog to make it to earrings." She explained as Yuffie gave a thumbs up.

The brunette cleared her throat when Cloud didn't respond. "I know you only have one ear pierced and there's two of them—Mog won't let me buy only one—but think of it this way! If you lose one, you have a spare!" she laughed nervously as she waited for Cloud's reply.

The box closed with a snap.

Cloud turned to the brunette. "Thanks." There was minuscule smile on his lips.

Hikari couldn't help but let out a big grin. "I'm glad you liked it!"

Yuffie snorted with laughter. "I didn't know Cloud could smile."

The moment she said that, the smile was wiped off of Cloud's lips. "Whatever," he scoffed, shoving the box inside his pocket.

Hikari shoved her hands inside her jacket's pockets and felt the box Roxas gave her. She pulled the box out and sighed a little. She thought of talking to Mog about changing the stud earrings to a pair of clip-on earrings, but she didn't want to make both Roxas and Xion sad because she altered their gift. She scratched her head and cleared her throat again, making Cloud and Yuffie stare at her.

"Hey, Cloud…"

"What?"

"Does it… you know? Hurt?" Hikari asked nervously.

Cloud raised an eyebrow.

"…when you got your ear pierced." Hikari continued, pinching her right earlobe.

Yuffie burst out laughing. "Really? You're scared of getting your ears pierced?" she held her sides as she continued to laugh, mocking the younger girl. "You fought tons of Heartless and sometimes got hurt because of them, but you're scared of getting your ears pierced by a needle?" she continued.

The brunette stood up from her seat. "H—Hey! There's nothing funny about that!" she stormed over to where Yuffie was and threw her arm around the taller girl's neck, giving a headlock. "It's different, ya'know?! I can defend myself from Heartless attacks, but when it comes to getting your ears pierced, you're expecting someone to put a hole on your ears! And you can't block it!" she reasoned, making up an excuse to save her pride.

Yuffie almost chocked in laughter. "Excuses, excuses!"

"What's with the sudden interest, kid?" Cid watched the scene with amusement.

Hikari released Yuffie from her hold and took out the box Roxas and Xion gave her. "Well… my friends gave me earrings and my ears aren't pierced yet… So, I was thinking of getting them pierced but—," she suddenly looked nervous again as she held her earlobe.

"I can pierce them for you." Yuffie suggested, a grin on her lips.

"No." was Hikari's immediate reply, taking a few steps away to distance herself from the ninja.

Aerith came out from the kitchen, holding a glass of barley tea. "If you'd like, we can visit Mog before dinner. I heard he has a new piercing service." She said as she gave Hikari the glass.

"A show before dinner? Neat!" Yuffie sniggered.

"If we want to do that, we better leave early." Leon responded. "It will probably take time."

Hikari almost spitted out her drink, staring at her friends with a deadpan look.

"…you guys are evil."

They laughed.

The brunette couldn't help but smile.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Riku dispelled his keyblade, staring down at the cloaked figure on the ground.

He had been around Beast's Castle to help keep the Heartless activity at minimum. Though he had done it in secret for obvious reasons. It was around the afternoon when he realized that someone had followed him out of the castle. That's when he sensed something different, an unusual scent according to his nose.

It wasn't much of a fight—which surprised him since the attack came from an Organization member, but he was surprised. He knew that the Organization had gained keyblade wielders in their ranks. Though, he was surprised that the Organization member had used a keyblade. A keyblade that was the exact same model as his friend's. The Kingdom Key.

There was one other girl in the Organization, Hikari's friend—Xion, he remembers.

The first time he saw her was when she was using Hikari's keyblade, the Starseeker.

The silver-haired teen walked closer to the Nobody. He kneeled down beside the girl and pulled her hood back as he lifted one side of his blindfold. His eye widened when he saw the girl's face. He quickly recovered and stood up, taking a few steps back.

"Your face… Who are you really? And why do you have a keyblade?" Riku asked as Xion tries to get up, clutching her side.

Xion groaned when she sat up, pulling her hood over her head again. "Tell me first… why are you dressed as one of us?" she questioned, raising her chin up to look at the young man.

"To make sure my best friend… sleeps in peace." Riku answered as he walked towards where the Nobody's keyblade had landed. He picked the keyblade from the ground, raising it to inspect the weapon. He turned around to face the Nobody. "I don't know who you're supposed to be, but you can't fight fire with sparks. This keyblade, it's a sham—worthless." He threw the keyblade aside.

Xion gasped as the keyblade landed in front of her with a loud clang. "My keyblade is not a sham! What gives you the right to say that?!" she gritted her teeth as she pushed herself up, gathering what's left of her strength to fight the imposter.

The Nobody ran towards the silver-haired teen, her keyblade in hand. In a swift movement, Riku dodged her attack. He raised his fist and slams it to the girl's bruised side. He didn't want to hit a girl, but this was different case. The Nobody inhaled a sharp breath as she fell to her knees, her keyblade disappearing in the prosses.

Riku stared down at the girl, "Find a new crowd. Trust me, those guys are bad news." He advised. The girl should've just stick with Hikari. No matter how much he disliked the idea of his friend befriending a Nobody, but Xion is still Hikari's friend.

Xion struggled to stand up, clutching her side in pain. "W—Why? You're the real sham here!"

Riku sighed. "Fair enough." He said as he walked away, summoning a corridor of darkness. He stopped right before he steps inside, looking over his shoulder to the Nobody glaring at him from under her hood. "You could say that I'm… the biggest Nobody of them all." He said lastly before walking inside the portal, leaving the Nobody alone.

Xion slammed her fist to the ground, her eyes filled with frustration.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Aw, c'mon, it wasn't that bad." Yuffie laughed, patting Hikari's back with a smile on her face.

Hikari pursed her lips, flashing Yuffie a glare. "You promised to do it at the same time."

"You were five seconds behind Mog."

" _Five_."

"I should've let Aerith do it."

Yuffie laughed nervously. "Sorry, I didn't hear the count down, okay?" she apologized sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her neck when Hikari kept on glaring at her with a sour look. She slung her arm over the brunette's shoulders, poking her cheek a few times. "But look at it this way, you managed to make everyone feel your pain—even Leon and Cloud over there." She threw her thumb over her shoulder to the two men walking behind them.

Hikari couldn't really see it, but when she got her ears pierced and then how she was screaming, weeping, and sulking, the whole committee somehow felt her pain. It was a sight to behold when the war-hardened warriors cringed because of a teenage girl getting her ears pierced.

The brunette couldn't really stay mad at her friend. "How does it look anyway?" she asked, tucking her hair behind her ear to show the new earrings.

Yuffie gave a whistle and an ok sign. "Three words: you look fabulous!"

Hikari smiled. "Thanks!"

"If you'd like, I can buy you another pair." Aerith smiled as she walked beside the two girls.

The brunette laughed nervously. "No thanks, Aerith. I think I'll stick with these ones for a while." She said, fiddling with her right earring. She wondered if Roxas and Xion would notice her wearing them the next time they meet again. She wanted to see the smile on their face when they saw her. Something about their smile made her feel warm—she had seen that smile, but she can't put her finger on it.

Yuffie clicked her tongue a few times. "You're too nice, you know? You could've just spared all that pain and altered the studs to clip-ons." She shook her head, a smile on her face.

"But that won't make my friends happy that I altered their gift." Hikari answered.

"See? Too nice!" Yuffie turned to face the others, her hands pointing at the brunette.

Leon smirked as he walked pass by the black-haired girl. "You could learn a few things." He said, his arms crossed.

Yuffie placed her hands on her hips. "Oh ha ha, very funny, Squall." She huffed out as she followed the man.

Hikari sniggered behind her hand, walking with Aerith beside her.

Night time in Hollow Bastion was a bit different. It was almost like Traverse Town when it came to nightlife. There were bars and pubs, but there was a rule the committee made that no one was allowed to get drunk and so everyone followed that rule for their own safety. There were also family-friendly restaurants around the district—but Leon refused to eat in the pizzeria at night, since it was too crowded.

The streetlights were turned on and the yellow light added more of a warm atmosphere around the district.

Hikari didn't need an even brighter light to know that someone was staring at them or more specifically, at her. Her blue eyes caught the black coat from the corner of her eyes when the cloaked figure decided to retreat. She stared at the direction where the cloaked figure had walked to, a frown on her lips.

"Kiddo?" Cid asked as he stopped in his tracks when the girl stopped walking.

The brunette turned to look at the blond man. "You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up with you all later." She flashed them a smile.

"Of all times, now?" Cloud raised an eyebrow, his arms crossed.

"Yup!"

Cid blinked confusedly. "Huh? Where are you going?" he asked when the girl turned around to the opposite direction of where they were going. "What could be more important than having dinner with us?" he half asked half shouted.

"Nothing!" Hikari answered as she ran.

"Doesn't sound like nothing!" Yuffie shouted her reply.

Merlin laughed. "Oh, let her do what she wants." He said, making the committee members turn to look at him with confused looks. Their youngest member was going off doing something that they don't know and it concerns them greatly because they know how reckless and a trouble-magnet she is. "She is trying to help out a friend, that's all." He continued.

"A friend?" Yuffie echoed.

Merlin nodded, a smile on his lips.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Xion sighed for the umpteenth time.

She sat there. Alone in the Fountain Area of Hollow Bastion. Earlier, she wanted to find Hikari and maybe talk to her for a bit before heading back to the World That Never Was again. But she found the brunette hanging out with her other group of friends and decided not to interrupt their time together. Besides, she came outside of the time they agreed—Hikari wouldn't want to spend time with her if she already has her friends.

The black-haired girl hugged her knees closer to her chest, burying her face in them.

She turned her head to look at her right when she heard someone sitting down beside her.

"Hikari?" the Nobody lowered her legs and turned her body to look at the girl. She flinched and held her side when she felt the bruise the Imposter gave her.

The brunette stared worriedly at her friend. "You're hurt!" she raised her hand and a green flower glowed above the black-haired girl's head, healing her injuries. "Cure." She casted. "I also have some potions. Here, take it." She fished out the glass container and handed it over to the girl.

Xion took the potion, sighing in relief when she felt the bruise had healed. "Thank you, Hikari…" she held the potion, staring at it.

The two girls sat in silence.

"…you came." Xion said in a whisper, but Hikari heard her.

"Of course! I could never just leave you." Hikari answered, a grin on her face. She saw Xion gave her a small smile before the smile was replaced with a frown. "Do you… want to talk whatever is bothering you?" she asked carefully. "Y—You don't have to if you don't want to! We can just sit and enjoy the view—" she added quickly, waving her hands in front of her.

"I'm sorry… today's just been… a really off day for me." Xion said, hugging her knees again.

The brunette blinked and decided to wait for the Nobody to continue. She had never seen her this sad—the first time was when she kept saying that she was afraid that Xemnas would turn her to a dusk if she can't summon a keyblade, but this time, if it was possible, she seemed a lot sadder.

"I messed up a mission badly… I had to take out this imposter member and I failed…" Xion buried her face in her knees, her voice a little muffled. "I couldn't beat him." she sighed out tiredly.

Hikari was glad that Xion didn't see her flinch. She had an idea who this imposter is and she hoped that the imposter didn't do anything too bad. She took a good look at Xion one more time to ensure that there weren't any more injures and sighed softly when she found none seemed to be out of place. Perhaps Riku didn't actually want to hurt her in the first place.

"You'll get him next time." Hikari patted Xion's back in a comforting manner. Truthfully, she didn't know who she should defend. Both were her friends and it would be wrong of her to tell Xion to just forget the imposter. She wanted to lift her spirits up, not make it lower than it was. "I'm pretty sure that you can do it! You summoned your keyblade just by believing, right? I'm sure you can beat this imposter by believing too!" she encouraged.

Xion didn't smile.

"He… called my keyblade a sham."

"He did WHAT?!" Hikari particularly yelled, standing up to her feet. She can't believe that Riku would actually say such a thing. He knew that Xion is her friend and he promised not to hurt her and Roxas just because they're part of the Organization. At first, she thought of forgiving him because he probably didn't mean to hurt Xion, but he hurt her feelings. "How can he say such a thing?! I've seen it with my own eyes, it feels real and it's not fake! Roxas have seen it too! Everyone has! It's not a fake—" she ranted, yelling to herself.

Xion giggled a little, making the brunette turn to look at her. "Why are you the one getting so worked up about it? It should be me." She said.

The brunette sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry… it's just that… Your keyblade is special to you and something special has to be protected." She replied.

"Thank you, Hikari…" Xion finally smiled at her. "It's just that… Saix and I had an argument… he called me a mistake—"

"HIM TOO?!" Hikari slams her fist into her hand. She didn't know why Saix bullied Xion a lot, but this was the last straw. Sure, she hasn't actually meet Saix face to face, but she hates his guts already. "You haven't done anything wrong. If that guy's so tough then why don't he go and face this imposter himself? Why does he have to send you to do his dirty work? He can't just send a girl to do the Organization's dirty work all by herself! He's a guy! A GUY—"

Xion cleared her throat, stopping Hikari from her rant.

"S—Sorry…" Hikari apologized, taking a few deep breaths to calm down. She sat back down on the fountain and turned to face her friend. "If I ever see those two, I'll be sure to kick their butts! I'll do it for you, Xion!" she grinned, giving a thumbs up.

She would definitely kick their butts now.

"Seeing you talk like that somehow made me feel better." Xion said, sitting properly.

"You don't have to waste your energy shouting, I'll do that." Hikari winked, giving a bright smile.

The two girls giggled.

"Xion, can you summon your keyblade?" Hikari asked.

The black-haired girl tilted her head, but did as told. "Why?"

"My master told me about the keyblade before he gave me his," Hikari placed her hands over Xion's, wrapping her hands around the keyblade's handle as well. "The keyblade is a picky thing and it chooses the person it wants to be the wielder. You're not a mistake and this keyblade is not a sham. This keyblade, it chooses you. That alone is proof." She looked down at the keyblade and then to Xion.

The Nobody threw herself at the brunette, an arm wrapped around her tightly. "Thank you…" she mumbled into her shoulder.

Hikari smiled, wrapping her arms around Xion's back. "Hey, you wanna know what would make you feel a whole lot better?" she grinned as she pulled apart from the hug.

"What?" Xion asked. She summoned away the keyblade as Hikari stood up.

"Eating dinner with my friends." Hikari offered her hand for Xion to take. The Nobody's eyes widened when she invited her to eat with the committee. "C'mon! It'll be fun! I'm sure you haven't eaten out before, right? We're having steaks for tonight I think, I could be wrong but food is food!" she grinned.

"We're not supposed to—"

Hikari blew a raspberry, "Psssh! Who cares what Saix thinks? Meeting new friends is great! He's doesn't have the right to stop you from making friends." She said and Xion looked down. Both Roxas and Xion always told her that they had to keep a low profile and minimize their interactions with humans, but in truth they interacted a lot—her included. "The committee will love you! Leon and Cloud are sticks in the mud at first, but once they warm up to you, they're awesome! Though, sometimes too sassy and sarcastic for their own good…" she hummed.

The brunette turned to look at the girl once more. "C'mon… just this once! Pleeeeeeease?" she whined childishly, trying to persuade Xion to join. "I'll let you borrow some of my clothes if you don't want the committee to find out you're with the Organization!" she clapped her hands together.

Xion sighed softly and stood up. "Okay." She smiled when Hikari cheered loudly.

Hikari wrapped her arm around Xion's shoulder as she leaded her back to Merlin's house. "Though, I'm sorry if my style doesn't really suit you… all I have are t-shirts, jackets and shorts and pants…" she trailed off when Xion giggled.

"No worries," Xion replied as she glanced over to look at the girl. Her eyes caught something on the girl's earlobe. "Oh! You're wearing the earrings Roxas and I bought for you!" she mentioned.

Hikari placed her hand over her ear, smiling. "Yeah, I just had to put it on right away." she said.

"I'm… sorry I couldn't come with Roxas to give it to you."

The brunette shook her head. "It's okay, I understand."

Once the two girls have arrived at Merlin's house, Hikari quickly went straight to her shared room. She opened her drawers and told Xion to pick whatever she likes. It didn't take Xion long to pick what she wanted to wear. A simple black sweater. She didn't need to borrow any pants since she was already wearing one beneath the cloak.

"You ready?" Hikari stood up from her bed, walking to the door.

Xion nodded. "Yeah."

The two girls quickly head out to the town with Hikari leading the way to the specific restaurant the committee picked to have dinner at. Though, first, they had to go back to the Fountain Area to put the Organization cloak there for when Xion wanted to go back to the Castle that Never Was. It didn't take them long to find the steak house.

"Hey! Hikari! What took you so long?" already, she could hear Yuffie shouting at her.

Hikari waved her head to the ninja as she walked closer with Xion behind her. The restaurant wasn't too packed, but they decided to eat outside to enjoy the clear night.

Aerith was the first one to notice the new face. "Hello, are you a friend of Hikari?" she asked kindly and the girl behind the brunette nodded. "I'm Aerith, it's nice to finally meet you." She introduced herself.

"I'm Yuffie! And these sticks in the mud are Leon and Cloud. That grandpa over there is Cid and Merlin. Nice to meet you!" the energetic girl introduced loudly.

"N—Nice to meet you all."

Yuffie nudged Hikari with her elbow. "You always told me he was _'he'_." She whispered to the brunette.

"Well, I never told you that. I have a lot of friends." Hikari whispered back. She turned to look at the committee, a pleading look across her face. "Guys, I want you to meet my friend, Xion! She's by herself tonight and I was wondering if she can join us for dinner!" she knew that she has Aerith, Yuffie's and Merlin's approval, but she didn't know what Leon, Cloud and Cid would say.

"I don't see why not." Leon nodded his head.

Both Xion and Hikari exchanged smiles before they take a seat. Hikari sat beside Aerith while Xion sat in between her and Yuffie.

"You look so thin! What have your parents been feeding you, kid? Eat as much as you want!" Cid passed out the menu to Xion, who took it nervously. "It's on us tonight." He said.

"T—thank you…" Xion hid herself behind the menu, completely overwhelmed with how accepting the committee is.

"Awww you're so shy! Why can't you be this cute when we first met?" Yuffie whined, staring at Hikari.

"Hey! What does that suppose to mean?!" Hikari turned to look at her friend, raising her fist at her.

"Exactly."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Thank you for having me." Xion bowed her head in thanks to the whole committee.

Aerith smiled. "It was wonderful meeting you, Xion." She placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "We would love to have you over again. You're welcome to come over anytime." She said.

"Yes, yes, do come over for some tea next time." Merlin laughed, his arms folded inside of his sleeves.

"Next time, we can talk more about Hikari's bad habits." Yuffie snorted with laughter as Hikari jabbed her on her ribs. "And the others too." she added, rubbing her sore ribs.

Xion giggled behind her hand.

"Careful on your way back home." Leon advised, smiling a little.

"Hey, I'm walking her back home here. If there's anything, we can take care of it." Hikari huffed childishly, crossing her arms over her chest.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Sure, you can."

"I can hear sarcasm." Hikari glared, pointing her finger accusing at said man.

Cid laughed. "Well, kiddo, it was nice meeting you." He ruffled the black-haired girl's hair.

Xion smiled. "It was nice meeting all of you too." they said their goodbyes and the two girls parted ways with the committee.

Dinner went by without a hitch. Everyone was nice to Xion and treated her like they had known her for years. Though sometimes, Cloud was a little too quiet, he never stared the girl down for being an outsider. He sometimes joins in the conversation—or in other words making fun of Yuffie and Hikari in front of the new girl.

"Everyone's really nice." Xion commented as they walked back to the Fountain Area.

Hikari sighed. "By nice, you mean, embarrassing me in front of you, then yes…" she slumped her shoulders in defeat before straightening up. "But they're like a second family to me and I guess that's just a family thing." She smiled.

"A family, huh?" Xion repeated.

Hikari nodded.

"I wonder… if I have a family when I was human." Xion took the cloak they hid behind the bench and sighed, staring at it with a frown.

The brunette placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Everyone has. I'll try my best to help you both remember."

"Thanks, Hikari…. for everything." Xion puts the coat back on and summoned a corridor of darkness.

"You can keep the sweater." Hikari grinned, crossing her hands behind her neck. "I hope we can do this some other time—with Roxas next time."

Xion nodded her head in agreement. "That would be great."

"I'll see you later then." Hikari waved her hand goodbye, a smile on her face. Xion waved her hand in farewell before the portal closed behind her.

The brunette let out a sigh before turning around to head back to Merlin's house.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _A few days later_

"What?" Hikari stared at her friend dumbfounded.

A few days passed since Xion came to Hikari for comfort. There hasn't been a visit from her two friends since that day until now, but one of them was absent. It was a surprise visit. She was walking around Hollow Bastion to patrol when she suddenly saw Roxas peeking at the corner. She made a quick excuse to separate herself from Yuffie to confront her friend in the alley.

A sigh escaped Roxas' lips. "Yeah…"

"But why?" Hikari asked, a frown on her lips.

"I flipped the wrong switch."

Hikari was even more confused now. "You flipped the wrong switch?" she echoed, an eyebrow raised. "Did you…uh… somehow turn off her room's light when she was writing a report and now she had to do her report again?" she tried to confirm as she didn't have a clue what they were actually talking about.

Roxas shook his head. "It's not that switch… it's more like the switch up here." He pointed his finger to his temple, a sad look across his face as he remembers the fact that Xion didn't want to see him for a few days. "Axel said that girls have these switches and if you flip the wrong one, you're out." he explained, rubbing the back of his neck.

The brunette hummed, her eyebrows knitted together. From what Roxas told her, the topic being discussed between them was the same, only Xion's reaction to each reply was different. With her, she managed to lift the Nobody's spirits up so she could at least smile and have dinner with the committee. Though on the other hand, Xion reacted differently when she was called special by Roxas. Hikari's also a girl, but she sometimes can't really understand what other girls are thinking as well.

"And Demyx said that girls are pretty scary when they're offended—Larxene was the example he gave." Roxas added and Hikari visibly stiffened. She knew who Larxene was and she can understand why Demyx told him how scary a girl can be. "You're a girl, right? Can you please tell me which switch did I flipped?"

Hikari almost chocked from her own spit. "What does that suppose to mean?" she gave him a look before a sigh escaped her lips. She didn't know what to say to him. She sometimes had a few disagreements with Selphie, but by the end of the day they somehow made up and forgive each other. "Well… have you tried talking to her about it?" she leaned against the wall, staring at her friend.

The blond shook his head. "No… Axel and Demyx said to leave her be, until she's ready to talk." He answered.

"That's one way to calm her down, but… it's better to talk to her now rather than wait and make the situation worse." Hikari advised, talking from a personal experience. If she had talked to Riku and forgive him, then she wouldn't have hated him for so long. Speaking of the boy, she hadn't got the time to give him a piece of her mind for hurting Xion. The committee had been very busy for the past few days and she hadn't got the time to visit. _'I should see Riku soon before I forget…'_ she hummed.

"Yeah?" Roxas snapped her from her thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Do you have an idea how I can apologize to her first?" Roxas asked, a sheepish smile on his face. "What you said was right and it's best if I talk to her now."

Hikari smiled. "If you're scared of offending her more with words, how about with a letter? Say something like 'I'm sorry'. That's simple, right?" she suggested.

Roxas' eyes brightened. "That's a great idea! You're the best, Hikari! you always have great ideas!" he said enthusiastically.

The brunette cupper her ear, leaning her head closer to the blond. "What was that? I can't hear you. One more time?" she held up a finger, waiting for Roxas to repeat his words.

"No repeats!" Roxas playfully shoved the brunette away, laughing.

Hikari laughed. "Anyways, good luck. Tell me how everything went, 'kay?" she gave a thumbs up with one hand on her hip.

Roxas nodded his head. "I'll see you later then." He waved his hand goodbye before he stepped inside the portal.

The brunette waited until the portal was gone until she turned around to leave the alley. Her smiled was replaced with a frown as her mind was filled with thoughts. She was worried that Xion might actually take Riku's and Saix's insults to heart—

She stopped. _To heart_?

Truth be told, she didn't really think much about what a heart can actually do before her island was taken by the Darkness. Since then, she learned how powerful one's heart can be. She sometimes wondered why Nobodies were called beings without hearts and emotions when they clearly showed emotions that came from a heart. She was positive that the emotions they showed weren't just from their memories when they were humans.

Complicated.

That was the one word that popped inside her mind.

"What is a Nobody anyway?" the brunette sighed.

"Well, a nobody is a nobody, right?" The brunette almost jumped when she heard her partner for the day spoke. The ninja stood a few feet away from her before taking a few long strides to reach her side. The ninja leaned her head closer before backing away. "Thanks for ditching me anyway. I had fun taking care of the Heartless that _suddenly_ appeared when you're gone." She huffed, her arms crossed.

Hikari gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry! I didn't mean to…" she claps her hands in front of her face, begging for forgiveness from her friend. She sighed in relief when Yuffie didn't seem to be mad at her in the first place. There was a smile on the older girl's face, a sign that she wasn't angry. "Hey, Yuff… What does it take for someone to have a heart?" she asked.

The black-haired girl blinked. "That's… a deep question." She hummed, rubbing her chin in thought. "Well, feelings and emotions, I guess? What brought this up anyway?" she asked.

The brunette shook her head. "Just a random thought…"

"Let's go back then. Aerith's making curry for lunch! It's gonna be just us girls!" Yuffie sniggered, turning around to head back to Merlin's house. The mechanic in the group finally decided to leave the house to help Leon and Cloud at the restoration site. The Claymore project hadn't progressed much and the creator decided to take a break from the computer. "Rock, paper and scissor to see who gets to be the delivery girl?" she grinned, holding up a curled hand.

Hikari gave the girl a sour look. "You know how bad I am at rock, paper and scissors! I always lose!" she huffed out, making her friend laugh. The brunette look down as a thought came to mind. "Actually, I was thinking that maybe you can cover me. I want to look for my friend right after lunch."

In other words, she wanted to go to Twilight Town.

"Again? Which one? Xion or the boy?" Yuffie sighed.

"Xion." Hikari lied. She was actually going to look for Riku.

"Fine, but you owe me for this."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Aerith waved her hand goodbye to the brunette as she exited the door. "Be safe!"

"I'll be back later!"

Hikari felt bad for always leaving the committee in the dark about her secret. It made her think a few times to lie to sweet Aerith about where she was going. Sometimes Leon and Cid questioned where she had been off to all the time, and Merlin came to her defense that she was doing errands for him. She didn't want to trouble the wizard because of her, but she can't do it without his help either.

The brunette shook her head, shaking the negative thoughts away.

' _It's… for their own good.'_

Once she reached the Fountain Area, she quickly wore the cloak before pulling out the Star Shard. She raised it up, pointing the object to the sky. With the frequent use of the Star Shard, she could finally control it to where she wanted to go. Though, it sometimes acted up on its own and somehow pops her into another world.

The Star Shard glowed brightly and shot up to the blue sky, taking the user with it.

It didn't take her long to travel between the lanes to reach Twilight Town.

It was almost as if in a blink of an eye.

By the time she opened her eyes, she was already in front of the Old Mansion's gates.

The brunette pocketed the Star Shard before walking towards the locked gate. One thing about the Old Mansion's security is the gate with an oversized lock. There wasn't a key fit to unlock the lock. Though one of the ways to open lock would be by the keyblade, breaking it was possible but it would take a lot of energy and effort.

She raised her hand and summoned the keyblade into hand, pointing it at the direction of the lock. The end of her keyblade glowed brightly and shot a small ray of light to the lock. It opened with a click and the gate moved, just enough space for the girl to go through. She walked inside the gate and turned around to lock the gate back. The Old Mansion's security was top notch, but it was a hassle to summon and dispel the keyblade every time they want to go in and out.

Once she finished, she summoned the keyblade away and continued her way to the mansion. It was dark inside. The lack of sunlight and light made the whole mansion looked dirty and the old furniture were covered in a thin layer of dust. The hygienic place in the whole mansion were probably the Computer room and Namine's room.

The brunette quickly headed up the creaky stairs to head towards the room on the left wing of the mansion.

"Naminé?" Hikari knocked on the door twice before peeking her head inside the room. She opened the door fully when she didn't see the blonde girl sitting in her usual spot. She closed the door and turned her head to the direction of the library. _'She's probably in the computer room.'_ She thought as she walked towards the opposite wing of the mansion.

It was weird that she had to draw a picture on the table first to access the computer room.

The computer room was dark. If it wasn't for the bright monitors from the computers, Hikari couldn't see a thing inside the room. As expected, DiZ was standing right in his usual spot. His back was turned against her, but she was positive that he knows she was inside the room.

"Hey, uh—DiZ." Hikari raised her hand up in greeting, despite knowing the man's personality that he might still be mad at her.

DiZ didn't look back.

"So, uh… I was wondering if you know where Riku is—"

"I do not know where the boy is." DiZ cuts her short, answering her question.

"Wha—What do you mean you don't know where Riku is?" Hikari frowned, staring at the man dressed in a red robe.

It was a complete blatant lie.

She was a hundred percent sure that DiZ knew where Riku is.

Riku was always at the Old Mansion with DiZ. For the past few visits, he was already there.

"It is exactly what I meant." DiZ replied calmly, not even bothering to turn around to look at the girl.

The brunette made a disapproving growl. "You're lying."

DiZ sighed softly, finally turning around to look at the girl. "The boy hadn't returned to Twilight Town for a few days." He answered, his hands behind his back. "He is not here." His eye stared at the brunette's blue ones.

Hikari stared back, her eyebrows furrowed down. A few seconds passed and the brunette backed down, letting out a heavy sigh. "Fine…"

The brunette continued to walk further into the room, heading towards where the memory pods are stored. She stopped when an arm blocked her path. She followed the arm and was met with a single bright orange eye staring down at her.

"What's the big idea? I wanted to see Naminé and my brother!" Hikari took a step back, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Naminé is currently busy." DiZ answered, folding his hands behind his back again. He stood right in the middle of the path to reach the room, staring at the brunette to make sure she stays in place. "She does not need to be disturbed by you." He said straightforwardly.

Hikari made a face. "Oh, c'mon! You're still mad 'bout the time I took Naminé out? That was like a week ago!" she groaned.

DiZ remained quiet.

The brunette gave up. "…I'll come back later then." She sighed, her shoulders slumped in disappointment as she turned around to walk back to the library. She stopped in her tracks when she heard footsteps. She looked over her shoulder and found DiZ was back in his spot in front of the monitors. She looked down, deciding it was best to leave. She didn't want to be in DiZ's permanent bad side.

"If Riku comes back here, could you _please_ tell him that I want to talk to him?"

A few seconds passed and DiZ answered,

"Very well."

Two words was better than none.

The brunette took her leave, though with a heavy heart.

"I guess I can play around Twilight Town for a bit." Hikari said to herself, staring at the direction where the town is located. It was a bit tricky to reach town itself since she had to go through the forest to reach the large hold in the wall, but it was the only way. The moment she stepped through the hole, she was greeted with the familiar relaxed and cozy atmosphere. _'I wonder how Hayner, Pence and Olette are doing with their assignments…'_ she thought, pulling up her hood to conceal her identity.

The last time she met the trio was a week ago, the date of her birthday.

' _They should be out from school by now.'_ Hikari thought, glancing over to look at the clock inside a store. She looked over to the usual store where they bought ice cream. The elderly woman attending the shop smiled kindly at her, despite her dark attire. _'I should buy them some ice cream.'_

She wanted to repay them even though they can't remember.

"What will it be today?" the woman asked with a smile.

"Ummm, three sea salt and one chocolate please." Hikari said, fishing out the munny to pay for the treats.

"Chocolate? That's unusual, is there another friend with you?" the woman laughed as she packed the popsicles inside a plastic bag before handing it to the buyer.

Hikari laughed, handing the munny. "Yeah." She answered as she took the bag. _'She must've thought that I'm Xion… or Roxas.'_

"Well, I hope you enjoy your time." the woman waved her hand goodbye.

"Thank you."

The brunette decided to wait for Hayner, Pence and Olette near their secret hideout. It would be weird for her if she waited for them inside the hideout. She had been there and hung out with them, but their memories of her and Naminé from that day were erased to protect them.

Looking down at the popsicles inside the plastic bag, her mind wonders off to Roxas and Xion. Seeing sea salt ice cream always reminded her of the two Nobodies.

' _I wonder if they both worked things out yet…'_ Hikari thought.

"You!"

The brunette turned to her left when she heard the cry.

Everything happened so fast.

From the corners of her eyes, she saw a black blur charging at her in speed. Instinctively, she jumped back to avoid the attack—dropping the bag of treats in the process.

The two opponents stood in a fair distance, staring down at one and another.

Now that Hikari got a better look at her attacker, her eyes widened in shock.

"I found you!"

 _Roxas_.

She knows who he is, but it looks like he doesn't know who _she_ is.

The brunette stayed silent. She was glad that she decided to pull her hood up the moment she stepped into town. It would be hard to explain to Roxas about how she obtained an Organization member cloak.

"You're the imposter!" Roxas shouted, accusing the girl.

Hikari's jaw dropped as her eyes stared at the blond in disbelief. He thought that she was the imposter. Sure, she's another one of the imposters, but she wasn't the real imposter. Though, what shocked her the most is the look Roxas was giving her.

Anger. Hate. And frustration.

The same look she gave Riku back when he was working with Maleficent.

"You'll pay." Roxas glowered, his eyebrows furrowed down. He raised his hand and a bright light began to emit from his palm. In a swift movement, he pulled the keyblade from thin air and lowered himself to a fighting stance. "I'll never forgive you!" he ran towards her, his keyblade drawn back.

Hikari stepped back once and moved to the side, avoiding the violent swings. She jumped over the blond and landed on her feet as she continues to block and avoid Roxas' attacks. She thinks she knows the reason behind Roxas wanting revenge on the imposter. The imposter hurt Xion, emotionally and physically.

"You think you're tough?!" Roxas huffed out, swinging his keyblade at the cloaked figure. "Fight!" he ordered, thrusting his keyblade forward.

Hikari jumped back. She glanced around, hoping to find an escape route. She didn't want to fight Roxas at all.

Roxas noticed the cloaked figure glancing around. "I'm not letting you get away!" the Nobody snapped his fingers and a number of Nobodies with swords appeared, blocking every single possible route of escape.

The brunette pursed her lips. This wasn't looking good at all. She knew that Roxas could summon some subordinates, but she never thought that he would do it against her.

She didn't have it in her heart to counter Roxas' attacks.

She ducked down when a Samurai swung its sword at her. She raised her hand, silently casting a fire spell to kill the Nobody. The ball of fire shot right out of her hand and she quickly used it to her advantage when the Nobody released its hold of the sword. She took the sword and slashed it across, killing the Nobody in one swing.

Hikari didn't want to use her rod or keyblade as Roxas had seen both of her weapons. She decided to continue using the Nobody's sword instead to counter their attacks.

"You'll pay for what you did." Roxas came into the middle of the battle when Hikari was busy taking care of the Samurais.

Hikari moved the sword just in time to block his keyblade. She lowered her head, afraid that Roxas would see something oddly familiar.

"Because of you, Xion's in a deep sleep!" Roxas shouted his anger.

Surprised, Hikari loosened her hold against the sword. Roxas took advantage of it and knocked the sword right off her hands. The brunette didn't had time to block or dodge his attack.

Hikari tried her best to hide her cry of pain when the keyblade hit her across her left shoulder to her lower torso. The attack knocked her right off her feet and she landed hard on the stoned ground with a loud thud. She grunted in pain as she tried to push herself up but failed.

"It's your fault!"

The brunette raised her head and was met with the keyblade's teeth right in front of her eyes. She looked up and saw the gaze Roxas gave her.

"Xion's wouldn't be in deep sleep if you didn't interfere with us."

The keyblade moved.

Just when Hikari expected a harsh blow to her head, she heard someone shouting the Nobody's name.

"Roxas!"

"Axel?" Roxas turned his head to where the source was coming from.

Hikari took that chance to leg-swiped Roxas, knocking him down. She quickly jumped to her feet and ran towards the direction of the alley, escaping from the Nobodies.

"Wait!"

The brunette kept on running until she was in a safe distance. Her heart pounded loudly against her chest and her breathing was heavy. She didn't have much time until Roxas reach her.

Hikari quickly pulled out the Star Shard and held it up above her head.

The Star Shard glowed brightly and shot up to the twilight sky, taking the brunette along.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The moment Hikari arrived at the Fountain Area of Hollow Bastion, she took off the Organization cloak as carefully as she can. She just hoped that the first person that greeted her would be Merlin.

The pain in her left shoulder was getting to her.

She held her left shoulder as the pain began to seethe in her nerve system, but it didn't hurt as much when the memories of Roxas fighting her came to mind.

" _It's your fault!"_

" _I'll never forgive you!"_

"Roxas…" Hikari mumbled as her eyes suddenly watered. She kneeled on the ground, leaning against the wall for support as tears continue to fall down. Her vision doubled as her eyes began to feel heavy in each passing second. She had to continue. She pushed herself up, continuing her way to reach Merlin's house.

It didn't take long for her knees to give up. She laid on the ground, breathing slowly.

She closed her eyes, slipping into unconsciousness.

"Xion… sorry…"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Argh! Finally finished for the day!" Yuffie stretched her arms above her head and sighed in content when a pop was heard. She flexed her arms a few times. "I can't wait to head back and sleep!" she grinned.

Leon karate-chopped Yuffie's head. "We still have a lot to do." He chided. The restoration for today had gone by smoothly, but he can't help but feel something was off. The volunteers had all went back to their own home while the committee stayed behind to do one last check before closing the gates.

"Yeah, yeah—hmm?" Yuffie squinted her eyes. "Hey—isn't that Hikari?" out of all the committee members, her eyes were the sharpest.

Aerith gasped and she quickly ran towards where the unconscious girl laid. The rest of the committee followed suit, circling around the two brunettes. The young woman gently turned the girl to face her.

"W—Whoa…. It almost looks like she just got out of a fight!" Yuffie stared at the brunette with worry.

"She probably did." Leon stated as he kneeled in front of the brunettes, his eyes looking at Hikari.

"Curaga!" Aerith casted as a green flower bloomed above the girl, healing all of her injuries. While the spell cured most of her injuries, some won't fully heal until a few days. The woman stared worriedly at the youngest. Out of all the committee, Hikari was the one who always came back with injuries. This time was probably the worse—way worse than her sprained wrist. "Where did you say she went to, Yuffie?" she turned her head.

The black-haired girl shrugged, shaking her head. "I dunno… she said she wanted to look for Xion."

"This doesn't look like she was attacked by Heartless." Cloud crossed his arms.

Cid clicked his tongue, annoyed at the thought of someone attacking the youngest member of the HBRC. "Well either way, we should take her home asap. We can ask her once she wakes up."

Leon nodded his head in agreement, picking the girl up gently.

A single tear slid down from her cheek.

"Sorry…"

* * *

 _Roxas would never hurt her._

 _And neither would she._

* * *

A/N:

About the keyblade injuring Hikari, I figure it would take a few hits for a Nobody or a Somebody to actually die from a keyblade—unless, of course, the keyblade is stabbed directly to the heart (just like how Xehanort did). I think I'll follow the mechanism how we played in the actually game to defeat a boss.

anyway, leave you thoughts about this chapter in the review :D I would love to hear your thoughts


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: thank you guys so much for the reads, favs, reviews and follows! It had been a very busy month for me, but I passed! I'm going to college this Spring :D

Thank you all~

Guest 1: here's an update~

Guest 2: yeah it was amazing!

Guest 3: Hmmm, I have actually thought of it…

Pennie: Thank you so much! Ups! Sorry about that. I sometimes do that because of how fast I'm typing and the auto-correct kinda sucks…

Guest 4: true, true.

Stormfall: Thank you!

c-guest: Thank you~

lulu9814: everything will eventually work out! :)

theIrishWriter: Well, there's only one imposter, so he assumed that Hikari was the imposter since she was wearing the cloak. And, true, true…

Gry21: Those are great ideas :) the second one gave me another idea haha

Mysterygirl145: True… the true evil one here is Saix (and Xemnas too). and that's true.

Guest 5: Here's the next update!

* * *

Chapter 21  
solitude

* * *

"I almost had him!"

Roxas was angry.

It came out of nowhere. The feeling.

The redhead kept quiet.

Roxas didn't mean for it to come out so rudely. He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly, trying to calm down. He couldn't really explain what was happening to him now. Why he felt so frustrated and angry.

Right after he visited Hikari, he returned back to the Castle That Never Was to apologize to Xion, but he didn't have the chance when the Dusks suddenly brought in an unconscious Xion to the Grey Area. He was visibly upset and angered when Saix told him to go on a mission instead being beside his friend.

"…why did you stop me?" the young Nobody asked, lowering his voice.

Axel looked down. "If you defeat that imposter, would it guarantee Xion will wake up?" he questioned and saw Roxas' eyes widen for a second before looking away. The redhead sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Running off like that to catch an imposter by yourself is pretty stupid." He chided, crossing his arms over his chest.

The spiky redhead was a hundred percent sure that the imposter is not really _the_ imposter. He was sure that it was just Hikari wondering around Twilight Town in the Organization coat. She just happens to be in the wrong place and time. The man was glad he made it on time to stop Roxas from finishing Hikari off. He was assigned a mission in Twilight Town and he just happens to be passing by when the two were fighting. Though, it looked one-sided since Hikari never raised anything against him.

"Look, I know you're just trying to help, but let's not rush things, hmm?" Axel continued when Roxas stayed quiet.

Roxas sighed, but he nodded his head in reply. The moment he saw that imposter, he just knew that he should drew out his keyblade and avenge what he did to his friend. It was the imposter's fault that Saix treated Xion more badly than before. Though, he should've take it out on Saix rather than the imposter, but the imposter started it first. And now that he thinks about it, if the imposter wanted to hurt Xion—he would've finished her already.

Anyone in their right mind would've at least fight back.

The imposter _didn't_ fight back.

Roxas glanced over to the alley the imposter escaped through.

Was he really the imposter?

A sigh escaped Axel's lips. "C'mon, squirt, let's just go back. I'm sure the two of us aren't in the mood for some ice cream right now." The redhead summoned a portal, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder.

The blond complied, stepping inside the portal without another word.

Before the portal closed, Axel glanced over his shoulder, his eyebrow furrowed in worry.

' _Hope you're okay, Lil Red…'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Is she going to be okay?" Yuffie asked worriedly, staring at Hikari as she slept peacefully.

Aerith nodded her head. "Don't worry, she's fine." She replied, tucking Hikari into bed. The committee wasted no time bringing the youngest member inside. Leon carried her into her shared room and left to leave the rest to the girls. Even with the combined healing magic from Aerith and Merlin, they wouldn't know when the girl would wake up. "She just needs rest now." She continued.

The woman turned to the small lamp beside the bed, adjusting it to a low lighting. It was dark with all of the curtains closed. She didn't want to keep the light on since it was too bright, but she also didn't want to leave the room dark. She was afraid that it might surprised the girl once she woke up.

Yuffie sighed. "This kinda reminds me when I first met her." she placed a hand on her hip and a frown appeared on her lips when she recalled the memory. It was months ago, but the exact same thing happened. Hikari was out cold and lying in bed. Perhaps with the same reason as well. "Let's just hope that this doesn't become her thing." She crossed her arms, glancing over to look at the girl's face.

A thought came across Yuffie's mind. Her eyes widened in realization when everything suddenly made sense. "…you don't think that she somehow met Riku and fought again now, do you?" she unfolded her arms, anger in her eyes.

The brunette sighed softly. "I don't think so… We don't know for sure what really happened." She said. She placed her hand on top of the girl's forehead, checking for a fever. When she didn't felt heat against her hand, she gently stroke the girl's head. "We can ask her when she wakes up, but for now, let's just let her rest." She said, walking towards the door.

Yuffie nodded her head, following the woman out of the room.

The door closed with a soft click.

 _Tick_

 _Tick_

The alarm clock on the nightstand ticks constantly. Minutes passed and it turned to an hour. It was quiet—with the exception of the girl's soft breathing and the ticking clock.

 _Whoosh_

From the corner of the room, a dark portal opened up. A cloaked figure stepped out of it. Judging from the figure—it was a man. He stood in front of the portal as he seemed to examine the room. He stood out from the room's light décor, sticking out with his tall stature and black cloak. The figure's gaze landed on the girl sleeping on the bed. Without making a sound, the cloaked figure made his way to the bed.

The man stood beside the bed, towering over the girl. He turned his attention away to the nightstand. He bends down, pulling the second drawer out.

Inside the drawer were a few small boxes and a black and white hoodie still neatly folded inside a clear plastic bag.

He pulled a small black box out from his pocket—it was similar to the boxes inside the drawer. He placed the box among the others before closing the drawer.

The man stood back up, straightening his posture.

He stared down at Hikari's sleeping face.

His gloved hand moved and brushed Hikari's bangs away from her face.

His lips moved.

 _You never changed_

* * *

Hikari snapped her eyes open.

Her eyes stared at the ceiling, her heart beating rapidly in her chest. She raised her hand and placed the back of her hand on her forehead, wiping the sweat away. She took a deep breath and exhaled from her nose, pinching the bridge of her nose as she tries to calm down. She had woken up because of another nightmare she couldn't remember.

It was more like she felt something that made her wake up so abruptly. She didn't know what it was, but it made her feel scared and uncomfortable. It felt so real to her and it was suffocating her.

It's almost as if it was right beside her.

"Good to see you up."

A voice startled her, making her shoulders tensed.

The brunette turned to her left and her lips parted open when she saw someone beside her bed. A certain redhead was there, sitting on a chair backwards.

Axel flashed her a grin. "I thought that you might never wake up."

Hikari blinked a few times, processing the information. "What does that supposed to mean? It's gonna take a lot to actually put me down." She huffed, making a face at the man.

The redhead chuckled. "Yeah, I know." he looked down, rubbing the back of his neck. He raised his chin up, his eyes softened and a smile was seen on his lips. "Glad to see you're alright and still your old self, Lil Red." He said in relief.

Hikari stared at the man before averting her gaze. "Thanks… for saving me back there." She thanked, finally remembering the events that happened earlier. "If it wasn't for you, I would've actually died." She turned to look at him, giving a grin.

"Why didn't you fight back? Everyone in their right mind would've fought back." Axel's smile faltered to a frown. "I know you're capable of fighting one of us. What would've happened if I didn't come there on time?" He said seriously.

Hikari sighed, staring down at her hands. "I just… couldn't do it."

It made her heart ache that Roxas actually hurt her—even though he didn't do it on purpose. She knew that Roxas doesn't really mean to hurt her or say those things to her if he knew that it was her and not the imposter, but it just made her somewhat guilty. Perhaps this was what Riku felt when she blamed him for something that he didn't do.

"Is it because he looks like Ven?"

The brunette closed her eyes.

"No."

Axel stood up and turned the chair before sitting back down. "So, you noticed that he is the exact copy of Ven's face."

"Gee, it's kinda hard to miss, _Genius_." Hikari rolled her eyes, giving a deadpan look. She laid back down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "They might have the same face, but they're different. Completely different. Unique in their own way, I suppose." She stated, a smile on her lips.

Axel stared at the girl. "Then Roxas would never hurt his friends on purpose." He suddenly said.

The brunette blinked and pushed herself up to a sitting position. "…you…knew?" she asked, completely dumbfounded at the fact that Axel knew of her friendship with Roxas. She never told him that she's friends with the Nobody and she was sure he didn't tell anything about her to the Organization either. "How? Was it that obvious?" the corner of her lips twitched up in an uneasy smile.

"My guts told me so." Axel smiled, patting his stomach. "You both have that _'destined to meet'_ vibes around you."

Hikari gave a sheepish grin.

The redhead shook his head, the smile still on his face. "And I suppose you're friends with Xion too?"

If she could've looked more sheepish than she is now, she could.

Axel chuckled. "You're so easy to read, Lil Red." He sniggered behind his hand. He reached his hand out, ruffling the girl's hair. The girl swatter his hand away, laughing a little. The redhead smiled before he stood up, taking the chair with him. "Roxas was just upset. He's just as harmless as a butterfly."

The brunette snorted as she pushed the blanket away, crossing her legs. "Who can also be as fierce as a lion." She retorted, but she said it in a joking way. "I know he didn't mean it. I learned to forgive and forget with Riku—forgiving Roxas is just as easy." She grinned.

"Exactly." Axel turned to face Hikari, snapping his fingers at her. He walked towards the desk and placed the chair back into place before turning to face the girl again. "I bet if he knew that it was you under there, he would've taken you out for ice cream without even asking why you were wearing the Organization coat." He leaned against the desk, his arms crossed.

Hikari laughed but kept her voice down. "Hey, Axel…" she received a hum in reply from the man. She debated whether or not she should ask Axel about Xion. She knew she would heard it from Roxas eventually, but she had a feeling that the Organization hadn't been exactly telling Roxas and Xion everything. "What really happened to Xion? Did Riku really caused her to fell into a deep sleep?" she asked, worried laced in her voice.

Axel's eyes widened for a second before he looked down. He was quiet for a few seconds before answering Hikari's question. "I… don't actually know myself. I was about to go Castle Oblivion to find out, but I had this feeling in my gut to stay at Twilight Town and lucky did I follow my gut." He raised his chin, staring at the girl's eyes.

A grin made its way up to Hikari's lips. "Always trust your gut!"

The redhead pushed himself off the desk. "I have to go now. Hope you'll feel better soon." He raised his hand, summoning a dark portal in the corner of the room. He stepped inside the portal and stopped. "If it makes you feel a lot better, Riku wasn't the one who caused Xion to fall asleep." He said.

Hikari sighed in relief, placing a hand over her chest. "Thanks… that made me feel a lot better." She smiled.

"Oh, one more thing." Axel turned sideways, a smile on his face.

The brunette stared at the redhead, waiting for him to continue.

"Happy birthday, Lil Red." He grinned, giving a two-finger salute.

Hikari laughed.

"Thanks, Lea."

The portal closed.

The brunette sighed, a smile of her face. She jumped out of bed and stretched her arms above her head. She placed her hand over her left shoulder and moved it a few times. The pain was gone and her muscles felt better than ever. Whatever Aerith or Merlin used on her, it definitely worked.

' _That feeling I had earlier… it was just Lea.'_ Hikari turned to face the nightstand right between her bed and Yuffie's. She walked around her bed to reach the nightstand and crouched down to her share of the drawer. She didn't understand why she felt so under pressure when it was just Axel. The man was someone she knew and was pretty much nice to her. It could've been just her feelings or because of a nightmare. _'Everything seemed to be there…'_ her eyes scanned over her belongings inside the drawer.

The brunette felt bad for suspecting Axel of going through her belongings, but she somehow had a hunch that someone was going through her stuff. Sure, it could've been just Yuffie messing around, but she felt uneasy after she woke up. She picked up the jacket inside the plastic bag and saw that her Scrapbook Diary was still there. She placed the jacket back, sighing in relief. Not that anyone could open it anyway. Only a keyblade wielder could open the book Merlin gave her.

' _Huh… never seen this box before… was it even there? Did they gave me this too?'_ Hikari picked up a black box, examining it. Most of the boxes inside her drawer were black, but she was sure she never seen this one. The box doesn't have a name to say who was it from just like the rest of the box. She opened it and raised an eyebrow when it was just a black leather belt. _'It's kinda like what Ven and Aqua wears over.'_ She said after she took it out of the box and held it up.

It was actually two black crisscross straps—minus the silver pendant Ventus and Aqua always wore.

' _It… could be from Lea.'_ Hikari hummed, a smile on her face as she placed the straps back into the box and inside the drawer. _'I was worried over nothing.'_ She sighed, closing the drawer.

The brunette stood up, looking over to the door. "And now for the hard part…" she slumped her shoulders. She hadn't thought up of an excuse to give to the committee. She could've just come up with an excuse that a Heartless attacked her, but it wouldn't make sense if a Heartless attacked her. She could just say that someone attacked her, but the committee would actually try and find the person who did this to her and she doesn't want them to hunt Roxas down. "Maybe I should just come clean…" she scratched the back of her neck, opening the door.

Her nose sniffed the smell lingering in the air.

' _Aerith's cooking stew.'_ The brunette concluded. _'Which means everyone is downstairs.'_ She stopped at the staircase, debating whether or not she should just sleep again. _'No turning back! No turning back!'_ she chanted, patting her cheeks a few times.

"Hey, I smell stew!" Hikari said excitedly, walking down the stairs with a grin across her face. "Are we really having stew tonight?" she added.

Yuffie almost fell off from her chair. "You're awake!" she shouted, standing up from the chair.

The brunette gave her a strange look. "Well, duh! I don't want to sleep in while you all eat Aerith's beef stew!" she huffed, pointing her finger accusingly at the black-haired girl. If she could've distract the committee from talking about what happened to her earlier that day for fifteen minutes, she could come up with a great excuse. Though, it would've been better if the committee just let it go, but the chances are so small. "Hey, are we having it with rice or mashed potatoes?" she asked, turning around to look at the committee's expression.

Leon stared at the girl with a raised eyebrow. "First, are you alright?" he asked, changing the topic.

"Wha'cha talking about? I'm great!" Hikari replied, flexing her muscles to prove her point.

"So… you don't remember what happened earlier?" Cid asked from where he sat.

"You were like so beaten up and you had us all worried!" Yuffie exclaimed, moving around the table to stand beside the shorter girl. She wrapped her arm around Hikari's neck, pushing her down a little. "Who's the little punk who dares messed with you? If he messes with one of us, he's messing with all of us!" she raised her fist up, looking down at Hikari with a determined look.

Hikari pushed Yuffie's arm away. "Geez, Yuff! No need to get so worked up about it." She shook her head, her arms crossed over her chest.

"You've been acting strange ever since you went to that Castle Oblivion." Cloud stated, making everyone turned to look at him. The brunette stared at the man with a surprised look, she was amazed that Cloud still remembered that she mentioned Castle Oblivion—which was months ago. No one in the committee seemed to pester her what she did in Castle Oblivion. She just mentioned that she went into a castle and found nothing. "Befriending a mysterious friend. Making up excuses to see a friend. Sometimes running errands for Merlin and sometimes waking up early in the morning." the man listed off.

Hikari exchanged looks with Merlin before looking back at Cloud.

"What really happened in that castle?" Aerith asked, her hands folded in front of her chest in worry.

Leon nodded. "We don't want anymore excuses. Tell us the truth." He said sternly, his hand on his hip.

"Well…" Hikari trailed off, scratching her cheek nervously. Her eyes gazed over to Merlin who smiled and gave her an approving nod. "You see…" she cleared her throat.

"I found Riku and we made up. End of story." She clapped her hands once, ending the story in a sentence. "But… I never saw him again after that…" she lied to protect Riku's whereabouts.

Yuffie blinked. "That's… it?" she leaned back when Hikari gave a nod. "Huh, I expected flying cats with laser eyes and giant fighting robots fighting each other to death." She shrugged.

The brunette's eye twitched. "I'm not that stupid to make such an unbelievable story."

"That's really nice, Hikari." Aerith placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "But it doesn't really explain why you end up so badly wounded. Was there something else that happened?" she asked again.

Hikari looked down at her hand. "You guys remember the mysterious guy who gave me a card, right?"

"You mean that scammer?" Cid tried to confirm and Hikari gave a nod. "You mean that a grown-up man decided that it was fair to beat up a little kid?" he clicked his tongue.

"I'm not a kid—but yeah, well you see, he's a part of this group and they looked like bad guys." Hikari tried to explain the Organization without pointing out that she was friends with three of them. She might as well warn the committee about the rest of the Organization, but she doesn't want them to attack Roxas, Xion and Axel. "But I'm not really sure what they're after… Some of them are nice I suppose? They let me off." she added.

Yuffie gave a confused look. "So, what you're saying that this group of bad guys have some good guys in it?"

"Sorta, yeah, I suppose so." Hikari nodded.

It was hard to come clean when she promised both Roxas and Xion that she would keep them a secret.

Leon sighed, crossing his arms. "So, we have another thing to worry about besides the Heartless and those white creatures…"

"I think… they're called Nobodies..." Hikari added. She had faced the white creatures, but she doesn't know what they were called. "I only fought them twice… once in Castle Oblivion and the second time was earlier today. I guess I kinda pushed his buttons a little too far." She said sheepishly.

The white creatures had been showing up around Hollow Bastion lately. They were harder to beat than the Heartless—which bothered the committee. Though, the white creatures hadn't actually done anything to harm anyone—they had been causing trouble for the committee.

"That doesn't really explain why you're always away." Cloud said, his lips set in a thin line.

Merlin laughed, joining in the conversation to help. "Oh ho ho, perhaps it's time to tell them the truth, my dear!" he smiled, giving the brunette a wink. The committee turned to face the wizard with confused looks and Hikari copied their expression. She didn't know what Merlin was referring to. "You see, Hikari became a keyblade wielder." He announced.

There was a moment of silence among the committee.

"What?" Yuffie was the first to respond. "Come again? I heard something like Hikari became a keyblade wielder." she leaned her head forward, cupping her ear.

"HEY! It's not that surprising, right?!" Hikari punched Yuffie's shoulder, completely offended that her friend didn't think that she has what it takes to be a keyblade wielder. She was glad that this topic was brought up. It was an even bigger topic than what really happened in Castle Oblivion that the committee would probably drop their questions regarding the Organization and Castle Oblivion. "Aw c'mon! You guys don't believe me?! Look!" she raised her hand and a bright light began to emit.

In her hand, the Starseeker appeared.

"Woah—you really are a keyblade wielder, kid." Cid whistled, a grin on his lips. "Looks like we have our bomb!" he laughed.

"Is that thing even real?" Yuffie stared at the giant key and Hikari handed the keyblade into the girl's hands. After a second, the keyblade that was in Yuffie's hands, returned to Hikari in a flash. The black-haired ninja gave a dramatic look. "You really are a keyblade wielder!" she gasped in surprise.

Hikari gave her a deadpan look. "Is it really that unbelievable?" she summoned the keyblade away, crossing her hands behind her neck.

Merlin chuckled, "She has been going back and forth to meet the great Yen Sid! I was told to train her how to use it properly." He explained. Not entirely true, but true. The brunette was glad that Merlin was always there to help. It was wrong lying to the others, but they had to keep Mickey and Riku safe.

"Why keep it a secret?" Leon asked. He looked somehow relieved with the information.

The brunette shrugged. "I just don't want you guys to get swarmed by Heartless every time I used it. So, I just kept quiet about it." She admitted.

Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose. "Was it because of what I told you months ago?"

"Uh… no? Not at all." Hikari thought back and remembered that Cloud did say something among the lines of _'you're lucky you don't wield a keyblade, otherwise we'll be swarmed by Heartless'_ to her. Suddenly, a dramatic gasp escaped her lips. "Could it be?! Cloud, you're actually feeling _guilty_ over something?" she teased, poking his arm with her elbow.

Yuffie snorted in laughter, soon joining Hikari in teasing the young man.

"Enough." Cloud karate-chopped the both of the girls' head, earning a loud cry of pain from them both.

The two girls rubbed the top of their head, exchanging looks before giggles escaped their lips.

Aerith smiled. "This means that you have to be more careful, Hikari." her smile soon turned to a frown as her eyebrows knitted in worry. The committee turned to face the young woman as Hikari gave her a confused look. "That Organization might be after you because you wield the keyblade." she said, placing her hand on the girl's shoulder.

Leon nodded his head in agreement. "Aerith's right. We don't know for sure what that Organization wants, but a keyblade wielder is most likely a threat to them." He concluded, his arms crossed over his chest. "Do they know you can wield one?" he asked as he turned to face the girl.

Hikari thought for a moment before shaking her head.

"Good… I think it's best if you don't use it outside." Leon said and turned to everyone in the room—who each gave him a nod. This was a sign that everyone agreed to keep Hikari's ability to wield a keyblade to themselves. "I understand why you and Merlin kept it a secret but thank you for sharing it with us." He smiled a little, ruffling Hikari's hair.

Yuffie slung her arm around Hikari's neck. "Yeah! We're family so no secrets between us!" she grinned.

The brunette smiled.

"Yeah…"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas sighed as he walked towards Scrooge's shop.

The blond didn't know what was going on with Axel, but the Nobody has been acting pretty strange lately. He was always in a dazed when they hung out at the Clock Tower. Roxas didn't know if it was his fault that Axel has been acting strange. He apologized to him and he said that it wasn't his fault, but everything had been going off since Xion fell asleep. He wished that everything will go back to the way it was.

"Ah, welcome back, lad!" Scrooge greeted the hooded boy with a smile on his face. "What will it be today?" he asked, opening the door to his fridge.

"2 chocolate please." Roxas held his fingers up and pulled out the exact amount of munny to pay for the ice creams.

"Aye, comin' right up!" Scrooge reached his hand inside the freezer, pulling out the specific ice cream Roxas ordered. He gave placed the two ice creams inside a plastic bag and handed it over to the boy. "By the way, have ye heard?"

Roxas tilted his head. "Heard about what?" he asked, giving the munny to the duck as he took the plastic bag.

Scrooge glanced left and right, "Someone attacked youn' Hikari! Everyone is talkin' 'bout it." He said, his eyebrows furrowed down.

The blond almost dropped the plastic bag. "W—What?!" his eyes widened in surprise. "Is she alright? What exactly happened?" he looked genuinely concern.

The duck sighed. "I heard that she got caught up in a fight and was injured quite badly." He explained and Roxas couldn't help but stiffened. He was shocked to hear that Hikari was injured from a fight. "But don't ya worry lad. She's doin' fine now. Why—she's already wonderin' around to patrol!" He reassured, a smile on his face.

"I have to make sure myself—" Roxas straightened his posture and turned to the direction of the town square. "Thank you for the info, Mr. Scrooge." He thanked before breaking off into a sprint to the Fountain Area.

The Nobody couldn't think of anything else beside his friend's well-being. All that matters to him is to look for Hikari and made sure that she's fine with his very own eyes. He had been friends with Hikari for a while and he knew the length of her abilities. She's a strong and determined girl who wouldn't give up easily, but with all that happened around him, he was afraid.

Roxas reached the Fountain Area in no time. He panted, placing his hand on his knees for support as he tries to catch his breath. His blue eyes looked around the area. It was empty. He walked closer to the fountain they used to sit and looked down at the water, staring at his own expression. He looked around once more for the brunette.

Hikari could just be late, but there was just this voice at the back of his mind saying that she could've been in danger.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-

' _Roxas?'_

Hikari caught the black coat from the corner of her eyes. She stared at the direction where Roxas had ran off too. She glanced over to the clock, it wasn't exactly the time they were supposed to meet and he was running as if he was as late as the White Rabbit from Wonderland. She didn't blame Roxas if he didn't saw her. She was inside a store, helping Mog unpack.

"Is something the matter, kupo?" Mog flew down, staring at the direction where Hikari was staring at.

Hikari turned to face the Moogle, "Nothing, nothing—oh! I finished unpacking the stuff you want me." She grinned, throwing her thumb over her shoulder to point at the shelves filled with accessories.

"That was quick," Mog examined the stack of boxes on the shelves. "Pretty good for someone as messy as you." He turned around with a somewhat smiley face.

The brunette gave him a look. "Was that a compliment?" she leaned back against the counter, her hands crossed behind her neck. "Hey, does this mean I get a special lifetime discount for helping you around the shop?" she asked as a grin appeared.

"Not a chance, kupo!" Mog replied, flying around the small shop to put everything in order. The girl slumped her shoulders in disappointment, but it was worth a try. The Moogle came back to her, holding a potion and an ether in hand. "But I'm willing to give you a potion and an ether for helping me, kupo!" he chirped.

Hikari's eyes gleamed. "Thanks! I'm running low on them!" she took the potion and ether gladly. "By any chance, can you add another two each?" she asked.

"Sure! That'll be 160 munny, kupo!"

"Same ol' Mog." Hikari sighed but pulled out the amount of munny needed to pay for the items she bought. The brunette placed the potions and ethers inside her pouch. She jumped over the counter and leaned against it. "Hey, I have to go now. If you need anything, just give me a call." She said, giving a salute.

Mog nodded his head. "Sure thing, kupo!"

Hikari waved goodbye and turned around, deciding to go to the Fountain Area to see what Roxas was doing.

It didn't take her long to reach the Fountain Area's entrance. From a distance, she could already see Roxas, sitting on the fountain, staring down at his shoes. She didn't need a telescope to see and know that Roxas was feeling down. She would've run towards him if it wasn't for the hand that held her back.

The brunette turned around, following the hand. "Riku!" she whispered in surprise when she saw the silver-haired teen.

Riku glanced over to the Nobody, noticing that the Nobody wasn't aware of their presences. He quickly moved away from the Nobody's line of sight, taking Hikari with him. He pulled her aside, dragging her further away from the Fountain Area. Once they were alone, Riku released his hold of Hikari's hand.

Before Hikari could even say anything, Riku turned around to face her.

"I heard of what happened from Merlin." Riku frowned, his eyebrows furrowed down.

The brunette clamped her mouth shut, the previous words that she was about to say to him gone. She told Merlin the truth because she didn't want to lie to the person who had helped her so much. It wasn't Merlin's fault that Riku or anyone else found out. She never told Merlin to keep it a secret from Riku or Mickey. Without even making a promise with Merlin, Riku would've found out about it one way or another.

"Roxas attacked you." The silver-haired teen stated, his tone serious.

Hikari averted her gaze. "It was an accident." She said under her breath.

"An accident that could be fatal. What if he actually killed you?" Riku raised his voice a little. He didn't want to yell at her again, but he was worried. He placed his hands on her shoulders. "I don't want to lose you too." He stated, giving a firm squeeze.

Riku sighed when Hikari didn't look at him. "This time, I want you to listen to me and stop being friends with him. It's for your own good." He felt Hikari's shoulders stiffened.

"It's not Roxas' fault! It was a misunderstanding." Hikari argued.

The silver-haired teen stared down at his friend. "You're right. It was my fault. I'm the real imposter." He sighed, covering his face with his hand and Hikari looked down. "But what I said was true. If you continue to be friends with him and that girl, it will only lead to heartbreak. It's better to cut the bond now before it's too late."

Hikari placed her hand over his hand. "I'm not leaving Roxas or Xion— _ever_." She raised her chin, looking up to stare at Riku's blindfolded eyes.

"In the end, we'll have to face them." Riku replied.

The brunette looked down. "I know…"

"So why?"

"Not all of Organization XIII are bad… Roxas and Xion, they're really nice and different." Hikari shifted her weight onto her left leg, her hands folded behind her back. She added Axel's name inside her mind, Riku didn't need to know that she and Axel are friends too. "I'm their friend… Is that enough proof?" she smiled a little.

A heavy sigh was heard. "Then look at me in the eyes and say that you're sure."

Hikari looked at Riku in the eyes, "I'm sure."

"…fine."

"Thanks, Riku." The brunette smiled.

The silver-haired teen couldn't help but smile in return. "You're reminding me of someone more and more." He summoned a portal as a chuckle escaped his lips.

Hikari grinned. "Oh, Riku! One more thing—"

"What—!" Riku visible tensed when Hikari kicked his bottom. He turned around with his jaw dropped in surprise. It wasn't exactly hurtful, but he was surprised about the kick. It literally came out of nowhere. "Why did you do that for?!" he shouted in complain.

The brunette crossed her arms, sticking her nose up high. "That—was for Xion." she huffed out childishly. She remembered her promise to the black-haired girl. "I don't back out from a promise." She said proudly.

Riku gave her a deadpan look. "You promised her that you will kick my butt? Or did you just want to do that for yourself?"

Hikari hummed. "The first one, definitely. The second one…" she trailed off, averting her eyes elsewhere before looking at the silver-haired teen.

Before she even knew it, Riku locked her in a headlock, drilling his knuckles into her scalp.

"H—Hey!"

"You deserved this too!" Riku laughed as he opened his hand to ruffle Hikari's hair, turning it into a bird's nest. He released Hikari from his grip, laughing as Hikari struggled to comb her hair back to the way it was.

"Gee, thanks, Riku." Hikari said sarcastically, a pout on her lips as she tries to untangle the knots Riku made from ruffling her hair too wildly.

Riku nodded. "Anytime." He patted Hikari's head gently this time. "I'll see you later, okay? Try to be careful." He said before entering the portal.

The brunette gave a nod.

She wasted no time going back to the Fountain Area.

The blond was still there, staring down at his feet.

Hikari stopped for a moment and continued making her way to reach the boy.

"Roxas?"

The blond looked up, finding the girl he had been looking for by the entrance of the Fountain Area. She raised an eyebrow when she saw him and took a few steps closer.

"Is something wro—?!"

"Are you alright?!" Without giving her time to react, Roxas grabbed her shoulders. He stared at her eyes with concern. He took a step back and looked around for any injuries. When he didn't find any bandages or scratches, he averted his gaze back to look at Hikari in the eyes who looked as equally as concerned. "How are you feeling? I've heard of what happened from Mr. Scrooge."

Hikari blinked. "Roxas, I'm fine. See? There's nothing wrong. Calm down." She spun around once to let Roxas know that there was nothing that he should be worried about. The concerned look never left Roxas' face and she gave him a reassuring smile. "It's okay. Don't worry about me. It's gonna take a lot more to actually put me down!" she showed him her biceps, giving a pose to make him laugh.

Roxas didn't find it funny. "Who was it? Who hurt you? Was it the Imposter?" his hands balled up into fists.

The brunette stiffened. She was unsure if she wanted to tell him the truth. She didn't know if he could actually handle it or not. "Roxas…" she called out to him softly, placing her hand on his shoulder, giving a reassuring squeeze. "It was just a fight and I lost… Don't worry about it, okay? I'm fine now." She smiled.

The blond looked away. "…the same thing happened to Xion." he muttered under his breath, but Hikari heard him. She stayed quiet and waited for him to continue. "I'm just… afraid the same thing might happen to you too." he finished.

Hikari smiled. "I'm right here." She guided him to sit on the fountain and sat beside him. "Now, tell me everything from the start."

And he did.

He told her everything that has been bothering his mind.

She listened to what he was saying.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Where… are we?"

After Roxas told Hikari what has been bothering his mind, she just took out her Star Shard and told him to hold her hand without really explaining where they were going. And now here they are.

Hikari glanced back to look at him. "Can't you tell? We're at the beach." She grinned before continuing to walk towards the shore.

Roxas looked around. It was indeed a beach. A small island to be precise. It was surrounded by the clear blue waters and he could feel the warm white sand from the sole of his shoes. The sound of the waves gently hitting the shore reached his ears. He looked out to the vast horizon, admiring how open and wide it was in this world.

"I always come here whenever I feel down or stressed." Hikari said as she stared out at the ocean. She took him to her home, Destiny Islands. Back then, she would always come to the beach whenever something troubled her. She would look out at the horizon—waiting for the sky to darken so the stars would come out. She used to talk to the stars whenever she was lonely. "I figured… the sound of waves could help you relax." She closed her eyes, feeling the warm sunlight.

Roxas joined her. "This… feels familiar…" he trailed off, closing his eyes as the gentle ocean breeze passed by. "It almost feels like I've been here before." He smiled.

The two sat down on the sand. They didn't talk to each other. They just stayed quiet, enjoying the atmosphere around them.

Roxas glanced down to his right hand when he touched something. "A seashell?" he blinked as he picked up the shell.

Hikari turned to look at him. "Oh, that's a Thalassa Shell." She smiled.

"A Thalassa Shell?" Roxas parroted, staring at the sea shell.

"It's one of the legends here. Sailors used them to make lucky charms that would keep them safe." Hikari explained as she picked up a different colored sea shell, placing it on Roxas' palm. "Hey, Xion likes seashells, right? How about we collect some?" she suggested, standing up.

"Great idea! How about we make a lucky charm for her too?" Roxas said excitedly, a big grin was on his face.

Hikari looked a little unsure. "I'm… not that crafty with making charms… but I guess we can try making it with glue and all that." She rubbed the back of her neck, giving a sheepish grin.

"That's alright. Let's pick as much as we can and then we'll see how it goes from there." Roxas laughed. He wasn't crafty with anything either. Out of all the three Xion was the craftier one.

The brunette nodded, a smile on her lips. She was glad that Roxas went back to his normal self. She didn't find it fitting if he was sad and depressed for a long period of time. She preferred him to be happy and energetic and curious, just like when they met.

"C'mon, Hikari—these seashells aren't going to pick up themselves."

Hikari blinked when she already found Roxas looking for the Thalassa shells at the sea. He left his coat, shoes and gloves on the shore. He wore a black top and rolled his pants to his knees so he could walk around the waters without getting soaked. He already picked up a handful of seashells but neither of them was the Thalassa shell.

"Hey, try not to walk too far. Remember, you can't swim!" Hikari teased, taking her jacket along with her shoes and socks off. She quickly rolled her pants up to her knees before joining Roxas in his quest to find more Thalassa shells.

Roxas placed a hand on his hip. "Oh haha, very funny." He laughed dryly, pouting at the girl.

"Don't look so salty, Rox. The sea's already too salty, it doesn't need you to add more salt." Hikari laughed before turning around to look for some shells. She yelped in surprised when she felt water splashed her back, drenching her in salt water. She turned around, a dirty look across her face when she glared at the culprit. "Very funny, Roxas. _Very funny_." She glared.

Roxas gave a smug look as he held the sea shells he gathered in one arm. "You looked like you needed to cool down—!" the smug look was wiped from his face when water splashed right across his face, making him drop all of the shells back into the waters.

"I was born and raised in an island. This is my domain!" Hikari said dramatically, puffing her chest out in pride. She moved around, making a few funny poses before deciding to stay on one pose. "Fear me, Landlubber!"

Roxas didn't know if he should laugh or face-palm because of Hikari's childish antics. "… I don't know what to say, really." He laughed behind his hand.

The brunette joined in the laughter.

In the end, they managed to collect a bunch of shells.

They went back to Hollow Bastion to make the charm, but to them it was a lot hard than it looks. They spent the next half an hour gluing the five pieces of Thalassa shells together to form the good luck charm.

"Well… at least we found five Thalassa shells." Hikari held the charm, staring at it with a sheepish smile. It didn't turn out like the way she pictured. It held together and didn't fall apart when she held it up, but it wasn't like the one Kairi made. They didn't find the same color, so they picked up and glued together different colors of Thalassa shells to form the charm. Two blues, one red, one green and one pink. "Do… you think Xion will like it?" she sighed, leaning back against the fountain's basin.

Roxas leaned back, glancing to his left to look at the other seashells they collected. "It… might not look the prettiest, but I'm sure she'll like it." He reassured with a smile on his face. "I should get going before Saix finds out where I am." He sighed, summoning a portal.

Hikari handed the charm to Roxas. "Tell me when Xion wakes up, okay? And don't let Saix's words get to you." She shoved her hand into her pocket, waving her other hand goodbye.

The blond nodded his head as he stepped inside the portal. "I'll try. See you later, Hikari." he closed the portal, waving his hand goodbye as well.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

-3 weeks later-

 _Clang_

Hikari's keyblade was knocked away from her hand. It flung across the field, bouncing off the ground a few times before sliding to a stop across where she was sitting.

"Gee, are you okay, Hikari?" Mickey asked as he lowered his keyblade, staring worriedly at the girl sitting on the ground in front of him. The King constantly visited Hikari to talk and train together with his successor, but for the past visits, Hikari seemed to have her mind somewhere else. "Is there something bothering 'ya?" he summoned the keyblade away.

The brunette shook her head. "Nah, everything's good." She answered and stood up, walking towards the stairs. "Sorry if I'm not meeting up your standards." She apologized with a sheepish grin as she sat down on the steps.

"Don't say that! You've done your best!" Mickey smiled reassuringly. He reached his hand out to the Starseeker and it reappeared in his hand. He handed the keyblade back to the wielder. "Why, you're one of the most talented keyblade wielder I have ever seen!" he encouraged as he took a seat beside the girl.

Hikari laughed, holding the Starseeker. "Thanks, Mickey." she leaned against the Starseeker and slouched with a heavy sigh.

The Mysterious Tower was a weird world. It only consists of Yen Sid's tower and nothing else. Besides using a gummi ship and the Star Shard, it could be accessed from Twilight Town by the special train at the station. The dark corridors couldn't be used within the tower's distance. The user can appear right at the doorsteps, but it can't appear inside the tower because of Yen Sid's magic.

Hikari looked up, staring at the sunset sky. "Hey, Mickey… What would you do if your friend suddenly fell asleep and won't wake up?" she suddenly asked.

Mickey's eyes widened.

The brunette cleared her throat, continuing her explanation. "You see… my friend got caught up in an accident and she's been asleep ever since." She wanted to know what Mickey would do in a situation like her. He seemed to always have a good solution to every problem. "And then my other friend whose friends with my friend who got into an accident, hasn't been visiting me for a while… so I don't know how everything's going on… I'm worried. I wanted to visit them, but I don't know where they actually are." She sighed heavily.

Almost three weeks passed since she last heard from Roxas or Axel.

Mickey turned to look at the stars. "I see…"

"What do you think I should do?" Hikari asked.

"Well, one thing to do is to always have faith." Mickey said. "You have to believe that everything will turn out okay."

"Yeah…" Hikari raised her hand up, reaching for the star in the darkening sky. "But just believing is not enough, right?"

"…right."

The brunette turned in her sea, facing the king. "Sorry for talking about something unrelated to training, Mickey." she rubbed the back of her neck, sighing.

"No, no! It's alright! It's good to share things that's bothering your mind with someone." Mickey said, pushing himself up. He turned his head to Hikari, giving her a warm smile. "It's not good to keep those things bottled-up to yourself, you know." He continued.

"I guess… thanks!" Hikari grinned. "By the way… have you seen Riku lately? I haven't seen him in a week or so…" she sighed, her mind wondering off to her silver-haired friend.

Mickey shook his head. "I'm afraid not…"

The keyblade wielder sighed loudly again. "DiZ won't let me see Naminé too. He kept saying that she's super busy and doesn't have time to see me. It's like, everyone doesn't want to see me or something—You don't think that something's wrong with me, now do you?!" she turned to face the mouse, a dramatic look across her face. "I don't smell bad or anything, right?"

A chuckle was heard from the mouse. "I'm sure there's another reason for it." He said and the brunette pursed her lips in a pout.

Since she couldn't see Naminé or Riku, she spends her days with the committee. She loves spending time with the committee, but she wanted to see her two friends as well.

Mickey patted Hikari's shoulder. "Naminé's working really hard to piece Sora's memories together and I'm sure Riku's doing his best to keep all the bad things away from him." he reassured.

Hikari propped her head up with her hand, sighing. "You're right…" she looked up to the stars as silence fell between them. Looking at the stars always reminded her of what Ventus said—that he was among one of those stars if she wanted to talk to him—that he will be listening to her. Even though she became a keyblade wielder, a step closer to finding her friends, she was still so far away. "Is… being a keyblade wielder really worth it?" she mumbled under her breath.

"Hmm?" Mickey turned to look at the brunette.

The keyblade wielder blinked. "Uh… well… What is the keyblade anyway? What made us keyblade wielders so special?" she corrected, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Well—"

"In ancient times, the World was whole and full of light." A voice said from behind the two wielders, making them turn to look at the powerful wizard dressed in a blue robe. The aged man stood in front of the door, his hands behind his back as he glanced over to the two wielders before turning his gaze to look at the stars. "Kingdom Hearts was believed to be the source of all light. Many desired the power of Kingdom Hearts—thus everyone fought over it."

"Woah—wait—does that mean there was a _war_ for Kingdom Hearts?" Hikari asked, completely baffled by the new information. "People fought for what's behind a door?" she glanced over to look at Mickey with her face scrunched up in confusion.

Mickey smiled a little. "That was another form of Kingdom Hearts—the heart of many worlds." He explained.

Hikari's mouth was shaped in an 'O' as she nodded, finally understanding.

Yen Sid nodded his head at Mickey before continuing his explanation. "It is known as a legend by many—the Keyblade War."

A sudden image of the rustic keyblades in a wasteland flashed before the brunette's eyes. She blinked a few times, shaking the image away. She turned her head to look at Yen Sid, waiting for him to continue.

"Kingdom Hearts was protected by its counterpart, the X-blade."

"The X-blade?" Hikari echoed. She somehow heard of that before.

"The X-blade coexist with the true Kingdom Hearts itself, a perfect union of all hearts and worlds. It is the only thing that can summon Kingdom Hearts." Yen Sid explained. He directed his hand to the keyblade in Hikari's hands. She looked down to the Starseeker, tilting her head in thought. "Such as the keyblade you are using now—the keyblades were originally created in the image of the X-blade." He continued.

Hikari's eyes stared at the Starseeker in awe. She never realized that the keyblade she was using was designed after the almighty X-blade.

"Though, the keyblade was created by those who intended to use darkness upon the world. Some choose to use them to protect the worlds of light." Yen Sid spoke, turning his head to look at both Mickey and Hikari—giving them nods.

Mickey placed his hand over Hikari's hand. "That's how special we are! We are chosen by the keyblade to continue their legacy to protect the light." He smiled.

Hikari smiled, raising her keyblade. She turned to look back at Yen Sid. "So… whatever happens to the X-blade?"

"In the aftermath of the battle, the X-blade was split into seven fragments of light and thirteen fragments of darkness."

"Woah…" Hikari exhaled loudly. Now, she has something to tell Roxas and Xion—the origin of keyblades. She had been wondering for awhile and both Roxas and Xion brought the topic up once or twice. She didn't know how to answer them since she doesn't know herself. Now, she could actually explain it to them both. "Were there other wielders besides us?" she asked curiously, perhaps they would told her about Ventus, Terra and Aqua.

Mickey looked down as Yen Sid closed his eyes, making the brunette frown.

"There were." Yen Sid answered. "There was a time when I walked the path of the Keyblade Master alongside Eraqus and…Xehanort. But the three of us have gone our separate ways."

The brunette blinked, a frown on her lips. She noticed the pause when Yen Sid mentioned the second name.

"And then, there were my three friends. Ven, Aqua and Terra." Mickey said, his eyes averted to stare at the ground. "Though, I never actually met Terra face to face, I heard a lot of good things from him! A friend of Ven and Aqua are also a friend of mine too!" he laughed, going back to his normal cheerful and positive self.

Hikari smiled. "They sound really cool." She didn't push on further. She knew what really happened to the them and it must've been painful for Mickey to discuss it. She looked down to the keyblade. _'I'll find them… I'll bring them back… somehow.'_ Her grip around her keyblade tightened.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

' _Looks like they're not going to show up again…'_

Hikari sighed, staring at the darkening sky. She laid on one of the benches, waiting for her friends to show up. This wasn't the first time she had been stood-up by her two friends—it had been happening for the past three weeks. She expected it and yet she still waited for them to come.

The brunette closed her eyes when the lights began to flicker on from the low light. Deciding that it was time to call it a day, she opened her eyes only to meet with another pair of blue eyes.

"WHOA!?" the brunette rolled over the bench, falling flat on her front. She pushed herself up as she heard giggles coming from above her. "Wha—"

"Were you always this clumsy?" Roxas laughed, offering his hand for her to take.

"Well, anyone would've fallen over if you do that." Hikari took his hand and he pulled her up to her feet. She patted the dust off her pants before realizing that there wasn't one, but two Nobodies standing in front of her. "HUH?! Xion!" she stared at the black-haired girl with her jaw dropped. "You're awake!" she cried out happily, throwing herself at the girl to give a big hug.

Xion giggled, patting Hikari's back. "Nice to see you too, Hikari!"

"Hey, what about me? Don't I get a hug too?" Roxas laughed, tapping his foot on the ground a few times.

Hikari pulled away from Xion and punched Roxas on his shoulder.

"Aw! What was that for?!" Roxas rubbed the spot where Hikari had punched him, glaring at her with a pout across his lips. "What's with the difference in treatment?"

"You never visited. Not even a word. Nada. Zip!" Hikari crossed her arms, glaring at the blond boy.

Roxas sighed, realizing his mistake. "Sorry… things have been pretty busy." He apologized, looking down to his feet.

The brunette sighed. "At least you two are here now, that's all that matters." She flashed them a smile, pulling them both for a hug.

Roxas and Xion exchanged smiles, returning the hug.

"Hey, Hikari, look!" Xion pulled something out from her pocket, holding it out for the brunette to see. It was the charm Roxas and her made a few weeks ago. "Thank you for the good luck charm… I kept it with me all the time and it actually worked. It brought me back safely every time." she held the charm close to her where her heart is, closing her eyes.

Hikari couldn't be more happier.

"Hey, how about we eat at that grilled cheese place you liked so much?" Xion suggested, pocketing the good luck charm back into her pocket.

"We can't go there dressed like this though…" Roxas looked down to his coat.

Hikari laughed. "There's always take-outs."

"Sounds like a plan!"

"Hey, hey, do you guys wanna know about the story of the keyblade?"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"You seemed to be struggling."

Naminé looked down. "A Nobody… is interfering, I think." She said softly, her face showed concern.

DiZ stopped right beside the girl, gazing at her with curiosity. "A Nobody?" he asked before looking back at the boy inside the white pod.

The blonde nodded. "Yes… I keep trying to piece his memory back together, but what if some of the pieces get lost?" she folded her hands in front of her chest. "If that happened—and they found their way into someone else, he'd never get them back." she looked up, staring at the boy's sleeping face.

The bandaged man folded his hands behind his back. "Oh, I think he can do without a memory or two." he said, not glancing to look at the girl standing next to him. "The boy has plenty of memories to keep himself moving."

Naminé frowned, turning to look at the man. "But what—what if he needs those memories in order to wake up?" she asked. "What if they're the key?" her voice softened as she turned to look back at the boy.

Diz sighed. "Naminé, you are a witch who has powers over Sora's memories and those connected to him." he stated as the girl stayed quiet. He turned to the girl, his lips set in a thin line. "Are you seeing something I cannot?"

The Nobody sighed softly. "If his memories become her memories… she'll never survive it." She said in concern.

"She?"

Naminé looked down.

Hikari never told her of her friendship with both Nobodies and it worried her when the time comes to tell her the truth—

—of Roxas and Xion.

* * *

A/N: A pretty big time-skip! Sorry about that, if I don't do it then the story won't progress far haha. But we're reaching to the part where everything falls apart for the trio.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: another update! Thank you all so much for the faves, follows, reads and reviews!

Majopi: hey~ yup! We are!

theIrishWriter: Roxas was just concerned that his friend was hurt. He was afraid that Hikari might end up like Xion. Actually, Xigbar/Braig never chased Hikari around in the Keyblade Graveyard—that was just Hikari running around trying to look for a way out. Hmm, Sora's scattered memories went into her and she was created because at that time Sora's memories of Kairi were so strong. That's what I got actually. DAYS actually skipped more than two months with nothing happening haha.

Guest: ah, I do plan that moment for a while! We'll be seeing it here in this chapter~

Lulu9814: that truth will be the hardest….

Mysterygirl145: it truly was one of the saddest ending in KH—aside from BBS of course. And aww that sounds so cute!

Stormfall: here's the next chapter~

* * *

Chapter 22  
News

* * *

It was another quiet afternoon.

There wasn't many Heartless around the town, making the committee's job a whole lot easier.

It was, as Yuffie said, the perfect day.

And yet, there was something off that Hikari felt when she saw her blond friend sitting alone by the Fountain.

Hikari inclined her head. "No ice cream today?" she asked, standing in front of him.

"No ice cream…" Roxas answered with a sigh, staring at his feet with a frown on his face.

The brunette pursed her lips, glancing left and right as she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. She stood there for a moment before deciding to sit next to Roxas. It clearly wasn't like Roxas to get upset over an ice cream, but they had been having ice cream for a while when hanging out with each other and it might be the reason why he wasn't acting like himself.

Hikari cleared her throat. "Uh… You know, Roxas… We can always buy ice cream from the market. It doesn't taste the same, but we don't always have to buy it at Mr. Scrooge's shop." She suggested, jabbing her thumb to the direction of the town.

Another sigh escaped Roxas' lips. "That's not it…" he turned his head to look at the girl beside him. "It's just… it's about Xion." he admitted.

"Did… you flip the wrong switch again?" Hikari gave Roxas a look. The last time Roxas 'flipped the wrong switch', Xion didn't talk to him for a few days and she ended up sleeping for almost three weeks. She knew that boys were a little insensitive and clueless, but she never thought Roxas be the type to repeat the same mistake twice. "You should really stop doing that to girls, ya know—especially to Xion." she advised, frowning a little.

The blond shook his head. "It's not that." He denied, giving Hikari the same look she was giving to him. "Xion's been acting strange lately." He sighed.

The brunette waited for him to continue.

"I'm worried about her. I told Axel about it, but all he said was that she'll get through it." Roxas stared at his hands, his shoulders slumped. He didn't look back at Hikari when he said what was bothering him. He kept his gaze down, avoiding contact with the blue-eyed girl. "I think he knows something is wrong, but I bet he's just telling me that to put my mind in ease." He took a deep breath, exhaling from his mouth. "It's not working…"

Hikari averted her gaze to look at the castle. She hadn't heard from Axel too since he visited her. It was weird that they only meet a few times, but she understood it completely because of his rank in the Organization. It would be even weirder for them both to meet every day—that would bring suspicion among the others. As for Xion, she had been visiting her without Roxas for a few times. She sensed something was bothering the black-haired girl's mind, but she didn't press on it further.

"Did she come here to talk to you?" Roxas asked, finally turning in his seat to look at the brunette. "Did she say anything?"

Hikari did the same. "Yeah." She answered. "But she never said anything about what's bothering her." she said truthfully.

The Nobody frowned, turning to look away as he closed his eyes.

"It's… 255, right?" Hikari suddenly said.

"Huh?"

"255. Don't tell me that you've forgot?" Hikari crossed her arms over her chest. She furrowed her eyebrows and gave the boy a frown as he stared at her confusedly. She shook her head as a smile appeared on her lips. "You're 110 days away from your birthday! Three and a half months away from now, right?" she flashed him a grin.

Roxas blinked. "…you actually counted that?" he chuckled, the _'feelings'_ he had before had disappeared for a moment. "3 months is still a long way to go." He said.

Hikari waved her hand in from of her face. "Nonsense! 3 months will go by a flash! Trust me." She laughed, placing a hand over her chest. Her lips twitched up to a smile when Roxas laughed. "So? What do you want for your birthday?" she asked, nudging him by his arm.

The blond pushed Hikari's elbow away. "Isn't this supposed to be a secret?" he laughed a little. "It'll ruin the surprise if I remember it, right?" he sniggered.

"Which is why I'm asking now, it's 3 months away and you'll forget it by the end of this week." Hikari joked. She reached her hand out behind Roxas and grabbed his hood, pulling it up over his eyes.

"H—Hey!" Roxas playfully slapped Hikari's hand away, a big smile on his lips. Truthfully, he was glad that Hikari remembered what he has been telling her. She might be quite forgetful at times, but she was actually a good listener who listens to each and every of his problems and would always try her best to figure out a solution for him. "How do I know that _you_ won't forget? Because I'll definitely remember it now!" he laughed.

Hikari gasped dramatically, a hand on her chest. "How dare ye! I never forget my friend's birthday!" she gave him the most offended look she could muster. She turned to look away with her arms crossed and eyes closed. She peeked an eye open when she heard Roxas' laughter. She couldn't help but smile herself. "But seriously, what do you want for your birthday?" she asked again.

Roxas smiled. "Honestly… another vacation would be nice. A nice long vacation." He said and he turned his gaze to look at the castle. The image of a beach came across him mind. Clear blue sky and the warm sand beneath his feet. The sound of waves gently crashing against the shore and the warmth of sunlight touching his skin. "I want to spend more time with my friends, at the beach or anywhere really… just having fun and doing nothing else." He closed his eyes.

The brunette wasn't sure how she could make that birthday present come true, but that doesn't mean she's not willing to try.

"Okay then!" Hikari said excitedly, jumping up to her feet. "A week long vacation at the beach! I'll be sure to find the best place to stay!" she gave him a thumbs up.

Roxas chuckled. "I was just joking. It's kinda impossible. Saix rarely gave us a vacation let alone let us slack off for a week."

Hikari clicked her tongue. "Tsk, tsk, Roxas, Roxas, Roxas," she gave him a smirk, shaking her finger left and right. Roxas gave her an amused smile as he watched her pace around, giving multiple excuses to bail him and Xion away from the Organization—to which he found every single one of them hilarious. "—or pretend that you and Xion had been abducted by alien mutant cats from another universe!"

"Pfffft!" Roxas burst out laughing. "Why alien mutant cats?" he asked as his laughter subsided.

The brunette shrugged. "It's from one of the films I watched when I was little. You see there's this series that I liked, it's called The Masked Sailor and he does all this sort of cools transformation stuff to save the world from alien mutants! One of them are cat-like!" she explained, going into details about her favorite show when she was a child. She placed her hands beside each side of her head to make horns and scrunched her face up to match the villain of her favorite show. " _Give up now, Masked Sailor! You can't defeat us!_ " she said in an 'alien voice'.

Roxas pulled his hood up, pulling on the strings to tighten the hood. "Never!" he followed her roleplay in a low voice. "I'll use my super-secret technique to defeat you!"

The two of them stare at each other before laughing.

Hikari wiped the tears away from the corner of her eyes. "Hahaha… geez, Rox, you sure do know how to get into character." She wheezed out, breathless from laughing too long.

The blond chuckled as he stood up, pulling his hood down. "I have to go now, I'm meeting up with Xion and Axel at the Clock Tower this afternoon." He gave Hikari a sheepish look when she gave him a frown. "Sorry…" he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck.

They had been spending less time together and their meet-ups were always either thirty minutes short to an hour max. She wasn't exactly bothered by it. So long as, the two of her friends are well and save—she doesn't mind.

"Nah, it's okay." Hikari shook her head, a smile on her face. "I don't mind it at all. As far as I know, our meet-ups can be an hour or a minute long—I rather choose that than not being able to see you guys at all." She grinned, wiping her dry nose with her thumb.

Roxas froze for a second. "Hikari…" his eyes softened as he placed his hand over his heart. "I'll be sure to bring Xion along in our next meet-up." He said, placing his hands on her shoulder with a determined look.

"Then I'll be sure to bring grilled cheese sandwiches next time!" Hikari laughed, patting Roxas's hand on her shoulder. "You guys really love those." She sniggered behind her hand when Roxas retreated back, his cheek flustered red in embarrassment. "You guys do know there are other foods than sea salt ice cream, right?" she teased.

"W—We know… we just rarely have them…" Roxas defended, turning to look away. He cleared his throat and raised his hand to summon a portal. "I'll see you later then."

Hikari laughed. "See you later, Rox."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas looked around the Round Room, glancing to each and every seat—empty or not.

It was the very next day. 256.

Saix had all of them gathered in the Round Room. It was the first meeting ever since the announcement of Xion's arrival. Roxas kept on glancing around, looking for his black-haired friend. She doesn't have a numbered seat in the room, but with five members gone—he was sure that she would take one of the empty seats in the room. He assumed the meeting was hold back because Xion hasn't arrived yet.

"Xion has disappeared." Xemnas' deep voice broke Roxas from his trail of thoughts. The blond sharply turned to face the monotonous leader, staring at him with wide eyes.

Demyx was the first one to respond, almost slipping from his chair. "What!? Whoa, whoa, time out!" he positioned his arm in an X in front of him, closing his eyes tightly. He made flying motions with his hand, looking at the almighty leader. "You mean, like, she flew the coop?" he asked, giving a disbelieve look.

The third eldest in the group scoffed. "Hah, preposterous." He said with his arms crossed. "What would drive her to choose her own demise?"

Luxord glanced over to the leader. "So, your orders are to bring the poppet back?"

Xemnas closed his eyes, his hands rested on the armrest. "On the contrary. No one is to go looking for Xion without my express permission." He announced.

"What? Why not!?" Roxas shouted, demanding answers from his leader. Xion is a part of the Organization—it's normal for someone to go look for their missing member. If it was other members, he was sure that Xemnas would send the entire Organization to go look for him.

Saix glared for the blond's disrespectfulness. "Your _friend_ will be left alone." He said sternly, making his point as the blond turned to glare back at him. "Or would you rather we find some punishment?"

Roxas balled up his hands, "I'd rather you get her back!" he demanded, slamming his fist on the armrest.

To which Saix replied calmly. "And why would we do that?"

The blond glared at the blue-haired man.

"All will be revealed when the time comes." Xemnas said, breaking the glare Roxas was giving to Saix.

Axel smirked, "Hmm… which means if the time doesn't come, things can stay as they are."

Saix turned to face Axel, his eyebrows furrowed. "Lord Xemnas has spoken. Obey, or face your end."

No one spoke after that.

"Dismiss."

-x-x-x-x-

* * *

Roxas couldn't be more upset.

Xion was missing and he can't even go out and look for her. He wanted to ask Axel, but the guy had already left to do his mission. The next person he wanted to talk to was Hikari, but he had a mission in Halloween Town. He debated whether or not he should visit Hollow Bastion first before his mission. After a moment, he finally decided to talk to his friend first.

It didn't take him long to him the brunette.

She was half-way to enter the Bailey when he found her.

And it didn't take her a second to realize that someone was watching.

"You two go on ahead, I forgot my goggles at Merlin's." Hikari made up a quick excuse, clapping her hands together to apologize to the two members of the committee. She was lucky that she was with Leon and Aerith. They didn't question her much like Cloud and Yuffie.

Aerith nodded her head. "Be careful on your way to the Castle." She said.

Hikari gave a thumbs up. "Don't worry! I'll be fine." She laughed as she ran down the stairs to the Borough to meet up with Roxas. She pretended to run back to Merlin's house but took a detour to the alleys. Even with the low lighting, she could still see Roxas. She took a few steps closer, walking deeper inside the dark alley. "Is everything alright?" she asked in concern.

Roxas pulled down his hood, looking at Hikari as if he was about to cry.

The brunette stared in surprise at the blond. He looked so hurt and heartbroken.

"Did… something happen?" Hikari asked again, this time softer. She had a few thoughts about what was going inside Roxas' head and neither of them were good news. She had never seen him this upset and yesterday he was upset.

"Xion's… missing." Roxas said quietly, his head lowered down.

Hikari's eyes widened. "…what?" she whispered in disbelief. "What?!" she said, a little bit louder this time. "H—How?! When? Why?!" she demanded.

The Nobody shook his head. "I don't know. I just knew about it this morning." he admitted, still looking down. He raised his chin up and stared at Hikari—completely disheartened by the fact that Xion left the Organization. "Lord Xemnas and Saix prohibit us from ever looking for Xion. The others seemed to agree…" he trailed off, his mind wondering off to Axel.

"What if—"

 _Pat_

"Snap out of it, Roxas." Hikari slapped her hands on Roxas' cheeks, making him face her. It wasn't quite strong or hurtful, it was just enough to snap Roxas away from his thoughts. She stared at him with a strong gaze, her lips set in a line. Her gaze softened when the boy stared at her, his eyes slightly watering. "Calm down, okay?"

Roxas closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.

Once he was calm, Hikari took a step back with her hands on her hips as she smiled at him.

"I know you're worried, but seeing you like this makes me even more worried than before." Hikari admitted, giving him a concerned look before her lips twitched up into a loose smile. "Just… try and think positive! I'm sure wherever Xion is, she's alright. She's a really tough girl who can do a lot of stuff with her keyblade!" she encouraged, patting Roxas by his shoulder.

Roxas chuckled, lifting his face up with a small smile. "You're right… Thanks, Hikari."

Hikari nodded. "Now, if that big fat Xemnas and Saix the Jerk won't let you go and look for Xion, let me look for her." she pointed to herself with her thumb, giving an encouraging look. "Or we can go behind their backs and look for her ourselves." she suggested.

Roxas turned his head, staring at the girl's unwavering eyes.

The brunette shrugged. "Hey, you've been seeing me behind their backs. So… what difference will this make?" she said, making her point.

"You… do have a point."

"This settles it! When the both of us are free, we'll look for Xion." Hikari announced as she pumped her fist. "But you're going to have to make it not too obvious with the Organization." She added.

The Nobody nodded. "Got it."

"At the meantime, I'll keep an eye out for Xion here."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hey, Hikari?"

"Yeah?"

Hikari stopped picking up the rocks to look at the black-haired girl standing a few feet from her. Two weeks passed since the meet-up with Roxas. She couldn't get her mind out of it. The fact that Xion suddenly went missing didn't made sense to her. She knew that something was bothering her friend's mind, but she didn't know that it would drove her to do something like this.

Hikari had thought that Xion would at least talk to her if she was mad at Roxas or Axel, but she didn't.

Turns out, it wasn't exactly that easy when she wanted to go look for Xion with Roxas. He had ben going on missions with other Organization members. The only time he could sneak away from his mission is if he has a solo—which is now rare. From the two weeks, only five times Roxas was able to join Hikari in their search for their missing friend. They searched the world Roxas was sent to for a few hours before calling it a day. When Roxas wasn't able to join in the search, she would go alone traveling to other worlds herself—all the while looking for Riku too.

During the one day when DiZ let her visit Namine, the blonde stated that Riku hadn't returned to the Old Mansion for a while. It also wasn't easy when her two friends keep on moving from one world to another. There was one world that she hadn't actually looked. Castle Oblivion. She remembered. Axel mentioned something about going to Castle Oblivion when she asked him about how Xion was doing.

She had visited Castle Oblivion a few times with Mickey to investigate, but they were all short since more Organization members beside Axel were being sent there. She was tempted to visit the castle by herself if it means finding Xion or Riku, but it would be a death wish if she wasn't with Mickey. She believed that she can put up a fight against the Organization, but if she was facing more than one—there wasn't exactly any hope of her winning or surviving.

"Were you even listening to what I was saying?" Yuffie asked, leaning against the hammer.

Hikari scratched the back of her neck. "Uh… you were saying something about Cid being a total grandpa?" she said unsurely. She had heard Yuffie mentioned his name a few times, but she wasn't exactly sure about what she was talking about.

Yuffie hummed before she turned to continue her work. "That's right! And he was totally grumpy because I finished the milk. I had to use milk to eat my cereal! I mean—what's the meaning of eating cereal if there's no milk?!" she huffed out, hitting the chisel with a bang.

"That's because you forgot to buy milk yesterday." Cloud retorted from where he worked.

The black-haired girl cringed. "Ups…" she said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck.

Hikari sniggered behind her hand.

 _Crack_

"Oh ha ha, very funny." Yuffie turned to the brunette, laughing dryly at her.

Cloud glanced around. He raised his hand up to silence Yuffie and Hikari from laughing. "Did you two hear that?" he asked, his keen eyes looking around.

The two girls exchanged looks and shrugged at each other. They didn't exactly hear anything strange inside the castle. The two girls decided to stay quiet until they hear what Cloud was hearing.

 _Crack_

"Huh… was that… a crack?" Hikari blinked when she heard the noise. She looked over to Yuffie when she felt a small rock hit her shoe. Her eyes widened when she saw a few rocks from the big boulders began to fall apart.

"Yuffie!"

Cloud quickly grabbed Yuffie's arm, pulling her away from being crushed by the fallen debris. Hikari jumped back when a large metal pipe fell down, hitting the floor with a loud clang resonating in the area. She stood in front of Yuffie and Cloud, casting a barrier over themselves as a few debris and small pipes bounced at their direction. Dust covered the whole area and once there weren't anymore debris falling on them, Hikari casted the barrier off, waving her hands in front of her face.

"Is… it over?" Yuffie asked, pushing herself up.

The blond man stood up, standing to look at the damage.

Hikari coughed. "Looks—like it!" she was lucky that she had her goggles on. It would be a pain to get all of the dust in her eyes. Her eyes stared at the path in front of her. "It looks like you hit the right spot, Yuff! Look!" she said excitedly at the sight of another cleared hall way.

It was dark, but she was certain that it was another hallway. During the months trying to clear the hallways, they had cleared off a few paths—only leading to another one. It was like a maze, but nonetheless they were happy that they were actually getting somewhere rather than being stuck in the same spot clearing the same path.

"No way!" Yuffie said excitedly, rushing towards the cleared path.

"Calm down, would you?" Cloud sighed, following after the hyperactive girl. The brunette followed after the two, jogging to catch up with them. The three stood in front of the hallway's entrance. "Care to share some light?" the man asked, turning to face the shorter girl.

"Sure thing, boss!" Hikari raised her hand, summoning her rod into hand. After a second, her rod glowed, shining some light inside the dark hallways. She swung her rod and the ball of light floated to the ceiling, illuminating the hallways. It was more narrow than the other hallways that they've cleared—which mean there has to be something in the end. The three continued their way further, turning when they reached a corner. "Huh? It's a dead end…" she said confusedly, pressing her hand against the wall.

"Aw man! I was hoping we could've find something!" Yuffie huffed, crossing her arms in disappointment.

Cloud closed his eyes. "We can't expect anything much." He said turning around to go back.

"H—Hey! Wait up!" Yuffie ran after the blond.

Hikari followed them in a slower pace.

 _Whoosh_

The brunette quickly turned around when she felt someone walked by beside her.

"Who—!" By the time she turned around, there wasn't anyone there. She relaxed her stature, but she didn't let her guard down. She was sure that there was someone beside them inside the castle.

"Hey, Hikari! We're going to clear out the next one! Hurry up!" she heard Yuffie called out to her.

"Coming!" the brunette quickly ran towards the entrance of the hallway, stopping to a walk when she saw her two friends at the exit.

She looked down to the floor when she felt a small rumble beneath her feet. The other two also looked down. It seemed like it wasn't just her who felt that small rumble. The three of them looked at each other before another rumble came, only bigger and stronger this time.

The whole castle seemed to shake, making it almost impossible to stay on their feet.

"An earthquake?!" Yuffie shouted over the noise, covering her head with her arms.

Hikari spread her legs, trying to maintain her balance from all the shaking. She wasn't aware of the rocks and pipes that were about to collapse right above her. Before she even knew it, she saw Cloud sprinting towards her, tackling her to save her from the falling wreckage.

"Cloud! Hikari!"

There was ringing in her ears.

"You okay?"

Hikari opened her eyes slowly. A blurry image of Cloud was seen looking down at her. After a few seconds, her vision cleared. Cloud remained where he was, looking down at her to make sure she was alright. The brunette pushed herself up, holding her head.

"What happened?" Hikari asked, sitting up.

Cloud glanced over to look at the wreckage and pipes that blocked their path. "An earthquake possibly." He said, standing up to walk closer to the wreckage.

Hikari quickly stood up, standing close to the wreckage. "Hey! You okay, Yuff?!" she shouted.

There was no immediate reply.

"Yeah!" a reply came. "You guys okay over there?!" they heard Yuffie shouting from the other side. It was a bit muffled, but they could still hear her.

The brunette looked over to Cloud who nodded his head. "Yeah! We're good!" she shouted back.

"Don't worry! We'll get you out of there!" another voice, Aerith said.

"Just hang on tight!" Leon.

"Okay! I guess!" Hikari replied, there wasn't anything to do by this side of the hallway. It was a dead end and they can't actually help take the wreckage and pipes away without proper equipment. She turned to look at Cloud who decided to sit down. "Well… looks like we're stuck here for a while…" she scratched the back of her neck, sighing.

Cloud said nothing to reply.

The brunette followed the man's move and sat across from him, leaning against the wall. They could hear the constant clanking from the other side—which means everyone is working together to get them out.

"Hey, Cloud." Hikari called out to the man, receiving a hum in reply. She smiled up at him. "Thanks for saving me back there."

"You're welcome." He replied curtly.

The two of them fell into another round of silence.

"…wanna bet how long they'll take to get us out of here?" Hikari decided to start a conversation. She knew Cloud wasn't the type to talk much, but the silence between them was killing her. "I'm betting… four to five hours maybe?" she said, giving a so-so gesture.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "It took us a week to clear out one path."

"But that's because no one is trapped on the other side." Hikari retorted, grinning from ear to ear.

"…true." Cloud admitted with a sigh. "Three hours."

"Three hours?! That fast?!" Hikari spluttered loudly.

"Hey! We heard that!" came Yuffie's reply.

The two of them glanced at each other before Hikari laughed and Cloud gave a small chuckle.

"Hey, Cloud… I've been meaning to ask you." The brunette began, crossing her legs. She hadn't asked him since they met again at Traverse Town. She wanted to ask, but it always slipped past her mind. She didn't want to ask it in front of the committee since it seemed pretty personal to the blond. "Did you ever find that person you were looking for?" she asked, genuinely curious.

Cloud turned his head sharply at the brunette's direction, making her flinch at the sudden change. The man sighed before he replied. "I did… but he ran off."

Hikari cleared her throat, the awkwardness returning. "Oh uh… that's too bad." She said unsurely. "I'm… looking for my friends too. It's been years since I last saw them. Just when I think I'm close to finding them, I'm actually still so far away." she told him, staring at her hand with a smile.

"One day… I'm sure that I'll find them." She turned to face him. "And I'm sure you'll find your friend too."

" _He_ isn't someone important to me—let alone a _friend_." Cloud cleared out, his arm draped over one bend knee. The brunette was left confused. If the man wasn't important or a friend to Cloud, then why was he searching so hard for him in the first place. "He's the one who embodies all the darkness in me." He said lowly and darkly as he curled his hand into a fist. "The only way to get rid of my darkness is to defeat him." he continued.

The brunette averted her gaze nervously. She had never actually seen Cloud be this… _dark_? She tried to come up with a reply that won't offend her friend, but it was difficult. Cloud was like Riku in a way. A thought came into mind. She suddenly remembered Mickey's words from the time in Castle Oblivion.

"I… don't know who this guy is, but I'm sure you can kick his butt!" Hikari smiled, giving a nod. "But Cloud… even if he's as you said, that's not exactly true. The one who can get rid of the darkness inside of you is you." She continued.

The man raised an eyebrow.

"…your darkness belongs to you. Just the same way your light does." Hikari said, exactly saying what Mickey said to Riku. She figured those words would encourage someone who had mixed feelings of his darker side. "So that means your darkness is a part of you, part of the path you choose now—the light!" she grinned, encouraging the man.

Cloud smirked, his eyes closed. "Inspiring. Was that your _other_ side? Or did you finally learn to grow up?" he teased, referring to Hikari's other side as her status as a keyblade wielder.

"H—Hey!" Hikari almost lost her balance. She glared at the man, giving him the most dirtiest look she could muster. She lost the look when she saw him smile and a chuckle reached her ears. She smiled in return. _'Come to think of it… this is the most laugh that Cloud has ever give.'_ She kept quiet to herself, resisting the urge to make a comeback that would probably ruin the moment.

An hour passed and there was still no progress with freeing the two committee members.

Hikari had fallen asleep half an hour ago with Cloud sitting beside her. The blond man had switched seats since Hikari's head was leaning so low. The two of them sat side by side, asleep as they wait for the others to help them get out.

The brunette opened her eyes, woken up by a strange feeling. She averted her gaze, finding another pair of black shoes other than Cloud's and her own. Her eyes could made out the hem of a black coat. She followed the coat upwards and her eyes widened when she realized who was standing in front of her. The moment she was fully awake and ready to attack, the man in front of them had disappeared—replaced with the white creatures.

"Looks like we have company." Cloud said, standing up when he saw the white creatures.

Hikari raised her hand, summoning her rod into hand. "You can use my rod I'll use—" she offered him her rod, holding it out for him to take. The skilled swordsman had left his sword outside. She believed him to be an excellent hand to hand combatant, but against these slippery creatures, he won't be able to take them out.

Cloud scoffed. "You seemed to be underestimating me." A smirk on his lips.

The brunette backed down. "No, I'm not!"

"Hmph." Cloud kicked a nearby stray pipe up to his hand, swinging it around a few times. "Let's see if those extra training Merlin and Leon gave you paid off." He said, charging first.

Hikari smiled before she followed suit.

"Thunder!" she casted, stunning the surrounding Nobodies from moving. She swung her rod at the nearest Dusk, killing it off in one swing.

"Is everything alright in there?" Aerith asked from the other side.

Hikari dodge rolled away from an attack. "Don't worry! We can handle it!" she replied, blocking another attack. It was hard trying to move in the small space. She was easily cornered and she had to keep on dodging to avoid being cornered by the Dusks. It seemed easier with Cloud. He kept attacking, swinging the pipe around with ease.

A Dusk tiptoed behind her, trying to land a surprise attack. The brunette quickly realized it, sliding behind the Dusk and casting fire to eliminate it. "Trying to sneak up on me, eh?"

"Not bad." Cloud commented, taking out a Dusk with one swing of the pipe he was holding.

The brunette grinned. "Last one!" she exclaimed, sliding behind a Dusk. "Heads up!" She used her rod to hit the Dusk, sending it towards Cloud's direction.

Cloud turned and slashed the Dusk across.

"Nice!" Hikari gave a thumbs up, summoning the rod away. "Huh… that was easy?" she said, after realizing that it didn't took much effort that it should. Even fighting Shadow Heartless were sometimes tricky. "Why did they show up in the first place anyway?" she knew the answer but asked anyway.

"A distraction, perhaps." Cloud said, turning his head to the wall. He walked closer to the wall, still holding onto the pipe. His eyes looked around the corners of the walls, trying to find something off. "Why do you think they attacked us in the first place if this place is a dead end?" he asked, his eyes still looking around.

Hikari went back to when she thought she saw an Organization member standing in front of them. "They're trying to distract us while they do something!" she concluded. Cloud was right. That Organization member could've summoned those Dusks to distract them while he escaped. If he summoned a portal then they would've noticed—which means only one thing. "Someone must've do some fancy thing to this wall to escape!" she pressed her hands against the wall.

"Nice to see you catching on."

The two quickly search for a switch or a secret panel. They searched diligently for any clues but to no avail, they didn't find anything out of the ordinary.

"It's no use… let's just knock it down!" Hikari suggested, summoning her rod again. "There's no one looking now right—!" she huffed out impatiently.

"Hold it." Cloud stopped her. He glancing over to Hikari and then focusing on the wall behind her. He moved his gloved hand across the surface of the wall. There was a slight differenced in height when he applied more pressure. He pressed on that specific spot, pushing a rectangle into the wall.

"Whoa!" Hikari's jaw dropped when the wall in front of them began to lift up silently. There was another hallway behind the wall. It was the most well kept among the others. The walls were painted a beige color and the floor was cleaner than the rest of the castle. It was almost as if it was a different place. "This is different compared to the other hallways." She said, walking across the hallways to reach the door on the end.

The brunette placed her hand on the handle, trying to push it open. "Locked…" she sighed. "Should've expected it…"

She looked around and her eyes landed on the blond.

Cloud rolled his eyes before turning around to keep on a look out if any Organization member was around spying on them. It was a small space to begin with. Even if the Organization was spying on them, they would've easily spot them out.

Hikari looked at her hand, summoning the keyblade into hand. She pointed the keyblade at the keyhole and a bright light began to emit, shooting a ray of light into the keyhole. A loud click was heard and she quickly dispelled her keyblade, turning to look at Cloud with a nod. She held the handle and pushed the door open, entering the dark room first. It was hard to make things out in the pitch-black room.

Cloud flipped the switch on.

The lights flickered, illuminating the room.

"This must be his study." Cloud said, walking inside the room.

Hikari stared at the large portrait nailed to the wall.

It was the first thing she saw when the lights switched on.

 _Tan skin._

 _Silver hair._

 _Gold-yellow eyes._

A dejected look came across her face.

 _Terra._

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

 _The creature born from darkness—_

' _I can't focus at all.'_

Two hours seemed to pass. Both Cloud and Hikari were still trapped inside the hallway. To make use of the time being stuck inside the hallway, they decided to search Ansem's study. They were many new books inside the office, all different from the library and a few seemed to be hand-written by Ansem himself. They each took a book to read, but Hikari couldn't really focus reading the book when there was a giant portrait of Terra behind her.

The Terra on the portrait was similar to the one she faced in Castle Oblivion. _'He'_ who possessed Terra—whoever he is.

A loud sigh escaped Hikari's lips as she closed the book.

"Finished? That's surprising." Cloud said from where he sat.

The brunette turned to face him. "Nah, I can't even get through the first page." She admitted. It wasn't that she didn't want to read the book, she was too tired to read. "Too tired to even read." She blew a raspberry, propping her head up with her hand.

Cloud closed the book in his hands.

"Clear!"

 _BOOM_

Hikari lost her balance when she heard something exploded, throwing the book in the process. The brunette glanced over to the blond man who gave her a nod. The two of them jumped up to their feet, placing the book on the table before running off to the direction of the hallways.

A large cloud of smoke and dust filled the hallway.

There was no wreckage or pipes covering the path.

The hallway was cleared.

"It worked! Hah!" Cid exclaimed proudly. He was one of the first to step out from the hiding spot. He stood in front of the hallway, a proud look across his face when his invention worked. "Never thought of the day I would put it into use!" he grinned.

"That was too loud!" Yuffie complained, jumping up from her spot. She glared at the man, her arms crossed over her chest.

Cid gave her an annoyed look, crossing his arms as well. "Well, what do you expect? That was a _bomb_." He huffed out.

Aerith ran pass the bickering duo. When she found Cloud and Hikari in the hallway staring at the freed path, she quickly went over to them. "Are you two alright? Are any of you hurt?" she asked, leaning down as she checked Hikari for any injuries.

The brunette shook her head. "Not at all. We're good." She grinned, reassuring the woman.

"Thank goodness…" Aerith sighed in relief, placing a hand over her chest.

Cloud crossed his arms when a brown-haired man came. "Took you long enough, Leonhart." He said with a smirk.

Leon joined them. "Sorry it took us that long." He apologized, flashing a smirk to the blond before looking at the younger girl who gave him a smile. "We had to call in reinforcements to dig you two out."

Cig laughed. "Lucky that it didn't take that long for me to find the materials and make the bomb." He placed his hands on his hips, a grin on his face.

Yuffie threw herself at the brunette. "I'm soooooo glad you're okay!" she wrapped her arms around the girl, crushing the girl with her hug.

"Yuff—!" Hikari dramatically reached for the air before the black-haired girl finally released her hold. The brunette laughed and took a step back to look at her friend. "Oh yeah, you guys have to check out Ansem's room!" she motioned her hand for everyone to follow.

The committee followed both Cloud and Hikari who led them inside the room. The books and papers were scattered all around the room. Earlier, Cloud and Hikari did tidied the room a bit, but they both decided to stop since they want the others to see the room as it was.

"So… this is Lord Ansem's study!" Yuffie whistled, standing right in front of the entrance.

Cid lightly pushed Yuffie out of the way, allowing the others to step inside. "It's a lot smaller than I expected." He said as he walked around the table, checking for a computer.

Aerith was the third one to enter. "Nevertheless, we're finally able to find out the reason behind his researches." She said, taking the book on the table. She skimmed through the pages quickly before closing it again to take another good look at the tittle.

Leon followed after the young woman, placing his hand on the bookcase. "How did the two of you found this room?" he asked as he turned to face Cloud and Hikari—who were the last ones who entered the room. They had informed them of their findings, but they didn't exactly explain how they found it in the first place. "Yuffie said that this was a dead end."

"Well, we wouldn't have found out about it if it wasn't for the Nobodies that attacked us." Hikari answered. She didn't know the real reason why that Organization member used the Nobodies to attack them. If the Organization wanted to keep the room a secret then they wouldn't have used those Dusks to attack them. The Organization could just keep quiet. It could be that the Nobody was leading them to the room, but what would they actually gain from giving information to the committee. "Cloud thought that there has to be something those Nobodies were hiding. So, we looked around and found a secret panel." She explained, throwing her thumb over her shoulder to point at the blond man.

Leon placed a hand on his chin. "If this room is hidden by a secret panel, then there has to be another one…" he concluded.

"That might be true." Cloud replied.

"Either way, Ansem sure do have a lot of programs." Cid whistled when he opened one of the drawers. He took out a cd, holding it up for everyone to see. There was a writing on the case. _ENCOM: Defense Prototype 1_. "I think I'm gonna take a couple and see if it can help me improve the Claymore." He said as he took a couple that has the same writing.

Leon nodded.

"Hey, is this guy Ansem?" Hikari asked, pointing her finger at the portrait.

"What do you mean? Of course, he's Ansem!" Yuffie stood in front of the portrait, spreading her arms wide to show the brunette.

Hikari thought back to the time she fought Ansem. The Ansem there was different from Terra-Ansem. Sure, they have the same gold-yellow eyes, silver hair and tanned skin, but she just can't say that those two are the same people.

"Yuffie was just a little kid to even remember who Ansem is." Cid replied from where he is, making the two girls turn to him. He placed the three CDs on the table and looked up to stare at the portrait. "Honestly, we all forgot how he actually looked like. It's been years since we saw him and he was a shut-in ever since he took the sixth apprentice. Never come out of the castle even once." He explained, rubbing the back of his neck.

The brunette looked back at the portrait. She was certain that this was Terra. Thanks to Namine, she could perfectly remember the real Lord Ansem. If it wasn't for the Nobody then she would've easily forget the man. She remembered everything about her childhood. It was as if she was watching a movie of it. With Namine's powers she remembered them as if Vanitas' hasn't messed with her memories.

If she could find the _real_ Ansem then she might find a clue to where Terra is.

"LEON!"

Hikari turned when she heard someone calling for Leon's name. Everyone did.

They all exchanged glances before Leon went off to look for the person who was calling for him.

The others followed suit, meeting up with the scarred man and the resident.

"Is there something wrong?" Leon asked.

The man who was calling for him was out of breath. "You have to… You have to come and see this…" he wheezed out. He looked pale and fear was seen in his eyes—it looked as if he had seen a ghost.

They followed the man to the Bailey. There was a crowd looking out to the Dark Vale. Fear written across their faces. Once they were aware the committee had arrived, they parted to give way for them to look.

Leon's eyes widened. "I—Impossible!" he shouted, slamming his hands against the brick balcony.

"What the—how is that even possible!" Yuffie panicked, grabbing a handful of her hair.

Aerith stared in horror, covering her mouth with her hand. Cid's jaw dropped, dropping the stick he was always chewing. Cloud's eyes narrowed at the sight with his arms crossed.

It was clear that the committee was struck by the sight, but not in a good way.

"Are those… _Heartless_?" Hikari asked in disbelief, still not believing the fact that her very own eyes was seeing a valley full of black yellow-eyed ants. She had never ever in her life seen that many Heartless in one place. From a distance, it looked as if it was black water, but it was a whole army of Shadow Heartless. There could be thousands and thousands of those inside the valley.

"We were shocked when we saw it… it seems that they appeared when that earthquake hits." A man said.

"What should we do?" another asked.

"We can't let them take our world again!"

"We have to do something!"

"We'll help with whatever it is!"

Leon turned to look at the volunteers. His eyes then landed to the shortest among the crowd.

The keyblade wielder.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Riku stared at the black-haired girl in his arms.

He knew the girl as Hikari's other friend from the Organization. The one who she was willing to risk everything to help.

The silver-haired teen had been traveling to different worlds trying to find a way to fight and keep his darkness under control. By doing this, he hasn't been able to return to Twilight Town to meet up with Hikari. It has been weeks since he last saw her. And when he did visit Twilight Town, he was informed by DiZ that there has been an interference in recovering Sora's memories. He questioned whether Hikari knew of the problem or not, both answered no.

 _Sora's memories are escaping through Sora's Nobody into a third person—and now they're starting to become a part of her._

Xion.

Hikari's friend.

Riku shook his head, shaking the thoughts away when he heard Xion waking up.

The girl opened her eyes, staring at him. "Are you…"

"Riku. Sora's friend."

Xion gasped. "Sora? You know Sora?" she asked as she looked at the teen.

It was a coincidence that he found Xion in Destiny Islands. He was dropping by his home world for a visit and he suddenly found an unconscious Xion by the small island. He had thought of checking up on Hikari after Destiny Islands but decided to hold back his plans until Xion woke up.

"Yeah." Riku answered and stood up. He offered his hand for her to take.

Xion took his hand and he helped her up. "Thank you. You saved me, but I don't know why… you did." She trailed off, looking up at him for an answer.

The boy stared at the girl's eyes. This was their second meeting. He promised that he wouldn't come in between Hikari's friendship with Roxas and Xion, but now that some light had been shed—he has to do something about it. He didn't have it in his heart to tell Hikari the truth. He kept on checking up on her—watching from afar, but he didn't confront her. He avoided to talk to her because he knew how heartbroken she will be when she finds out about the truth.

"I guess… I just felt like it." Riku answered, walking away from the Nobody.

"Riku, please…" Xion stopped the boy from leaving, reaching her hand out. The boy stopped—his back turned on her, but he was listening. She placed a hand over her chest. An image of a red-haired girl flashed before her eyes. "Tell me more—about Sora and the girl he's always with."

Riku paused. "You mean Kairi?" he turned around, looking at the girl through his blindfold.

"Kairi…" Xion repeated. She closed her eyes. There's a name now for the red-haired girl that has been appearing in her dreams. She raised her gloved hand and placed it on the side of her head when she felt a slight headache coming. "That's right. She's the one who looks so much like me."

The silver-haired teen walked closer. "To Sora, she's someone very special."

Xion held her hand up, asking for Riku to stop. "It's just… I remember things about the two of them." She admitted as she walked away. Every since she found out who she really is at Castle Oblivion, she had been having constant dreams of Sora and Kairi. She had fled the Organization to find out more about the two. "But I'm nothing more than a puppet—something that somebody created." She said sadly, placing a hand on her chest.

Xion leaned against the tree for support. "So why would I have… their memories?" she turned around to look at Riku.

The silver-haired teen didn't answer.

The Nobody had thought of asking Hikari since she seemed to appear in some of those dreams but decided against it. That day—the moment she decided to escape the Organization, she found Hikari promising Roxas that she would look for her. She knew that Hikari meant good—that she wanted to reunite her with her friends, but she can't face them now. Not like this.

Xion sighed as a wistful smile appeared. "Do you know where Sora is now?"

"That secret stays with me." Riku bluntly replied. He wasn't going to risk telling anyone of Sora's location. "Xion. Your memories… they really belong to Sora." he walked closer to the girl.

Xion turned to Riku, "So you mean… I'm like a part of him?"

Riku nodded his head. "When his memories were scattered, some of them found their way inside you." He explained and the girl winced, pain written across her face as she clutched her throbbing head. He paused for a moment before continuing. "Now, Sora has been put to sleep so that we can piece together his memory. Except…" he trailed off.

"You can't because some of them are a part of me." Xion continued for him. She straightened her posture, taking a deep breath. "That means he won't wake up unless I go back to him."

The silver-haired teen gave a nod. "Yeah you got it." He reached his hand out and placing it on top of the girl's shoulder gently. "But if you go with me to Sora right now, we could give the memories inside you back to him." he said.

Xion looked away.

"And Hikari… who is she to Sora? They look so much alike… are they?" she trailed off, imagining both Hikari and Sora side by side. They have the same shade of blue eyes and brown hair. She gasped when she realized the connection between the two. "No…. that's…." Her eyes widened.

Riku looked away. "That's right. They're family. Brothers and sisters."

"All this time… Hikari is…" Xion sucked in a deep breath, covering her face with her hands. She sat on the ground, staring at her hands as she thought of the young brunette. Her friend—is actually her _sister_. "She knew all this time…" she whispered.

Riku shook his head. "She doesn't have a clue who you are." He said, clearing things between the two of them. He knew that Hikari would be upset when Xion suddenly started treating her differently. It was his mission to bring Xion back to the Old Mansion and make her give up her memories to Sora, but he doesn't want Xion to hate Hikari for something that she doesn't know. "To her, you're a friend she's willing to risk her life for."

Xion pulled something out from her pocket.

The lucky charm Roxas and Hikari made for her.

"That's…" Riku stared at the charm, a small frown on his lips.

An image of Hikari appeared in front of Xion, placing her hand on top of hers.

 _The keyblade is a picky thing and it chooses the person it wants to be the wielder. You're not a mistake and this keyblade is not a sham. This keyblade, it chooses you. That alone is proof._

There was a smile. _I hope we can do this some other time—with Roxas next time._

Xion held the lucky charm close to her chest. "I'm sorry but… I can't go with you. It's my friends—they need me." She closed her eyes. Axel, Roxas and Hikari. She doesn't want to return to Sora just yet. "And I need them too." she said, standing up.

Riku sighed, placing his hand on her shoulder. "Maybe you should take some time and think about it. Figure out who really needs you more—and where you belong." He knew that Xion wouldn't just go so willingly with him.

"How will I know where I belong truly?" Xion asked as she raised her chin up to look at the taller teen. "I'm not sure I can promise you if I can come up with the right answer." She looked down to the lucky charm in her hand.

"Well, the answer you come up with can't just be right for you. It has to be one that works best with everybody. You and your friends and everyone else."

Xion sighed.

"I'll try…. Thank you, Riku."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"I'm… sorry, Leon."

Hikari apologized for the umpteenth time.

"You don't have to apologize." Leon replied. "We don't blame you."

The young keyblade wielder could only sigh.

The committee had decided to stop and close the restoration of the castle for the time being. No one other than the committee can enter the restoration site since it was too dangerous. The volunteers agreed to follow and the committee promised to strengthen the defense around town in case the Heartless inside the valley decided to break through.

Leon announced to everyone that there isn't much that they can do because there wasn't a keyblade wielder among themselves. He lied. For her.

When Leon looked at Hikari, he was silently asking if she could help them take out those Heartless.

She can't.

She backed out.

Hikari didn't know why she can't do it. She has the power. She has the keyblade.

But she didn't speak up.

The brunette didn't have the guts to talk to the others after that. She stayed quiet and avoided the others. It was then that Leon decided to take Hikari out for a walk.

They were at the Marketplace, on top of staircase behind the Jewelry Shop.

Hikari leaned against the brick railing, staring at the castle from afar.

"How can you not blame me?" The brunette asked, turning her gaze to look at the man standing beside her. Leon was leaning against the railings with his back facing the castle. He looked at her as he arched an eyebrow in question. "You want me to fight those Heartless, right? I didn't give you my answer…" she said quietly.

"No one's forcing you to do it." Leon answered. He crossed his arms as he glanced down to the market one floor bellow them. "That was another option. Our first priority is to keep everyone safe."

"But if I speak up, then everyone would be safe." Hikari turned to face the man. Her eyes met Leon's own blue eyes. She tore her gaze away as a frustrated sigh escaped her lips. She turned to look at the castle again, leaning against it. She crossed her arms on top of the railings to bury her face in her arms. "I backed out…" she mumbled.

The brunette was confused. She was considered as one of the bravest and most out-spoken girl in Destiny Islands. She wasn't afraid to do anything daring or try something new.

"Why did he choose me to be his student?" Hikari sighed, thinking back to the time Mickey choose her to be his student. She made a promise to him once she was a keyblade wielder that she would be stronger in the mind, heart and body. All this time, she thought that she had grown in those three aspects, but it turns out she didn't. "Why can't he choose Riku? He's much more capable and stronger when using the keyblade."

The brunette pressed her forehead against her arm. "I'm a coward _and_ a failure…"

Leon stayed quiet.

Hikari lifted her head up from her arm. "Leon—!" her eyes widened when she was staring right at the tip on Leon's gunblade. She immediately jumped back, surprise written all over her face.

"Who are you?" Leon asked, frowning. His gaze softened when Hikari gave him a confused look. He lowered his gunblade and took a few steps closer. "This isn't the Hikari I know."

Hikari lowered her head.

"The Hikari I know would've just let it go and train harder to reach her dreams." The man continued.

Hikari reached her hand out to the castle. "I just… don't know what happened." She said, staring at her hand. She trained under Merlin, Mickey and even Yen Sid to use the keyblade. Under three great masters she was trained and yet she lost all her courage. "I'm a keblade wielder. I can destroy those Heartless with one swing. I can use the keyblade to protect everyone here."

"Riku wouldn't back down from it." She whispered. "And neither would Sora…" she added quietly, too low for Leon to hear.

Leon placed his hand on her shoulder. "You're not your master nor you're Riku." He stated, making the girl look at him. "You're not a coward or a failure. You left your home world to stay and help us rebuild Hollow Bastion—a world that was once swarming with Heartless. That takes bravery."

Hikari stared at the man, listening to his words.

"You have your strengths and weaknesses just like everyone else here."

Leon smiled, giving a proud look. "I'm glad you didn't just raise your hand and say that you were going to take those Heartless out. We would've thought you were crazy." He said and Hikari laughed. He continued, "You were thinking rationally. No one would've survived taking that many Heartless, not even myself." He chuckled.

Another laugh escaped Hikari's lips.

"So, don't worry over it." The man ruffled Hikari's hair, making her smile. "We'll find another way."

The keyblade wielder nodded. "Yeah… I'll train harder! I have to!" she said determinedly, her courage coming back. "For everyone."

"That's the spirit."

Hikari grinned. Leon was right. She would've just let it go and be done with it. She could've used it as a motivation to get stronger. She didn't know why she felt so down in the dump when she didn't volunteer herself to take those Heartless out. After talking to Leon and spilling out what has been bothering her mind, she felt better.

"I guess I was just scared of what you guys think of me…" the brunette said sheepishly. "Thanks, Leon."

Leon nodded his head. "From now on, I want you to use your keyblade and not your rod." He said and Hikari looked at him weirdly. He was the one who wanted her not to use her keyblade in public when she told everyone the truth. She didn't mind using it in public. She had used her keyblade in front of Roxas before. "Might as well learn how to use the keyblade against the Heartless and Nobodies now than later. I think what you lack is confidence in your own skills as a keyblade wielder." He stated.

"I'm not—"

"You keep comparing yourself to your master and Riku." Leon pointed out, correcting the girl.

Hikari opened her mouth to object but closed it when she realized that Leon was right.

"It's not a problem if you look up to them, but it's not good to always compare yourself to others." Leon advised and Hikari gave a nod, listening to his words. "Starting tomorrow, you'll be using your keyblade when we go to the restoration site."

The brunette straightened her posture. "Aye, aye, captain!" she gave him a salute with a big grin across her face.

"Now that's the Hikari I know." A chuckle escaped Leon's lips. He placed his gunblade against the railing, leaving it there before he walked down the stairs to the market. "Wait there." He ordered, raising his hand to stop the girl from following him.

The young keyblade wielder could only nod and watch him walk away. She turned to look back at the castle and raised her left hand, staring at the charm Namine, Riku and Mickey gave her. The stone glistened in the low light, making her smile a little. She shouldn't have compared herself to anyone. Everyone is different and special in their own way. When under pressure, she sometimes forgot that.

"Here."

Hikari turned to her left, staring at the ice cream offered to her. She took the ice cream from Leon, staring at it before turning to look at the man who had his own share in his hand.

"Heard from Mr. Scrooge that you've been eating ice cream a lot." Leon said as he leaned against the railing to stare at the castle. "This was a new flavor he created. Thought it would be the perfect sea salt, but it turned to this." He waved the ice cream around gently.

"…never thought of the day I see Leon eat ice cream on a stick." Hikari said in amazement, laughing to herself. She followed him and leaned against the railing to look at the castle together. She held her ice cream out to the man who raised an eyebrow at her. "Cheers." She grinned.

Leon closed his eyes, a smile on his lips. "Cheers." He bumped his own ice cream with her own.

"Salty caramel and vanilla." Hikari tasted, recognizing the taste right away.

 _Roxas and Xion would've loved this_.

It was sunset when Leon and Hikari decided to go back to Merlin's house.

Leon went down the stairs first with Hikari following behind.

The brunette stopped on the stairs when a single black feather flew down in front of her. She reached her hand out and it landed gently in her awaiting palm. She raised it up to take a better look at it.

Hikari looked up to the darkening sky, glancing around.

She looked back.

There was a man. His back turned to her.

His hair longer than many and silver in color. Dark feathers surrounded him, just like the one Hikari was holding on. She was about to call out to him, but just as fast as he appeared, he vanished in a blink of an eye.

The keyblade wielder stopped, looking down to the feather in her hand.

"Weird…" she said, letting go of the feather so the wind could take it from her.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A/n: end of chapter~

I predicted there's going to be 3-4 more chapters for Forget Me Not to finish.

What do you guys think of the DAYS part of the story so far?

See you all in the next chapter~


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: another update! Sorry it took me so long…

MemoryStornSanctuary: thank you!

Guest 1: I did thought of that haha

Dylvision: thank you!

SwanGirl24: I'm not actually that interested in Sonic… but I guess she'll be a human and fight along side him to defeat Eggman (or was it Egghead?)

Majopi: LOL!

Gry21: That's such a sweet idea! I love your version of the reunion! And the Aristrocats idea was cute too!

Guest 2: Oooh! What a plot twist~

Fanfic Lurker: Awww thank you so much! Your review makes my heart warm!:D

Guest 3: That's a cute idea!

Stormfall: Uh-oh!

Guest 4: oh! I do plan for something like that haha

Swan girl: thank you!

Lulu9814: Thank you so much!

Mysterygirl145: Oh wow… and thank you!

Guest 5: thanks!

Question: I know I've said that I've already decided on Hikari's keyblade name but I can't help but think it over twice again… I like Guardian's Embrace but it sounded so similar to Kairi's Destiny's Embrace. What do you guys think? Have any ideas?

Oh and, I'm thinking the KH2 part of the story's title. It could be Blue Horizon, Snowdrop or Bluebell? I don't know… I'm so bad at naming things…

* * *

Chapter 23  
Fracture

* * *

 _Clang_

"C'mon Hikari! You can do it!" Yuffie cheered from where she stood.

Hikari could only grin when she heard Yuffie's encouragement. She didn't had time to reply to her when Cloud landed another hit. She blocked his sword—their weapons clashing together. Her arms trembled as she tried to push Cloud back—or at least to keep his sword as far as possible from herself.

After the increase number of Heartless, they began to train together rather than individually. Usually, Hikari would have to train alone with Merlin—sometimes with either Riku or Mickey—to keep her status as a keyblade wielder a secret from the others, though not anymore. The committee deserved to know that she could wield one. Just as Yuffie kept reminding her, they were like a second family to her. She appreciated the time and effort Merlin gave to train her, but it felt more fun when training together with the others for a change.

 _Whoosh_

Hikari took a step back, raising her keyblade to block Cloud's foot from hitting her face. She pushed his foot away and jumped back to stand a safe distance. A grin made its way up to her lips. "Ready to give up?" she asked.

The brunette knew of everyone's combat skills due to being partners when in patrols. She never went face to face with them until now—with the exception of Cloud. She had gone one on one with the man when trying to win the West bracket's tournament in Olympus Coliseum. Cloud wasn't as brutal to her when sparring with the others—though, he and Leon seemed to go all out with each other.

Cloud shifted the giant sword in his hands. "I should be the one asking you." He smirked.

Hikari pointed her keyblade at the blond with a confident grin. "Fat chance! There's just no way I'm gonna give up! I have a feeling that I'm gonna win this time!" she said proudly. This was their tenth spar and she has yet to win against Cloud. She had won a few times against Leon, but that was because the man was too soft on her. "How about you cool that head of yours?" The tip of her keyblade glowed a faint blue as snowflakes appeared around the teeth. "Freeze—!"

"No magic!" Aerith chided.

"W—Wha!" Hikari stumbled and quickly raise her keyblade to point at the ceiling instead of her opponent. The blue ray of light quickly materialized as ice when it made contact with the ceiling's surface. She turned to face the young woman with a disbelief look. She was about to say something to her but stopped when she saw a blur of yellow from the corner of her eyes. She blocked Cloud's blade once before he strikes from bellow, knocking the keyblade right off her grasp. The man finished the spar by pointing his blade at the girl. "Aw c'mon! I was distracted!" she shouted in complaint, raising her hands up in surrender.

Cloud lowered his sword, placing it over his shoulder. "That's the reason why you never win." He retorted.

Hikari gave him a sour look. "I would've won if I could use magic." she huffed out, sitting down on the floor with her legs crossed. Magic was prohibited when sparring. It wasn't fair for those who weren't that competent in magic. She's quite good at using magic, but only Merlin and Aerith were competent in magic. "Why can't I be allowed to use magic? I'm against you, you should be able to handle it." She frowned, propping her head up with her hand.

Cloud snorted. "It's called being fair." He held his hand out for the girl to take.

Aerith giggled behind her loosely curled hand. "No matter if it's Cloud or not, it's against the rules we made." She said.

The brunette let out a sigh before taking his hand. "I guess this makes zero out of eleven…" she said, slumping her shoulders in disappointment. She raised her chin up as a smile appeared to replace her sullen look. "No matter! I'll get you next time!" she exclaimed, pointing her finger at the man.

Cloud stared at the pointed finger. "Sure, sure." He said, pushing the finger away from his face as he made his way back to the sidelines.

"Don't worry, Hikari! You have plenty of chances!" Yuffie jogged over to the youngest member.

Hikari picked her keyblade up, smiling at it. "Yeah."

The truth was, she didn't want to use her keyblade to spar against the committee members. It was one of the downside of training together. She knew what the keyblade could actually do if she accidentally hit them. She had been hit with it once and it could've turned fatal if it wasn't for Merlin's magic. When they first started to train together, she held back every time—to which everyone replied for her to never hold back.

"Cheer up!" Yuffie slapped Hikari's back, making her stumble a little. "It's me and Leon next! You better pay attention!"

Hikari let out a grunt. "Yeah, yeah," she lazily said, rubbing her lower back as she summoned her keyblade away. She walked towards the sidelines and took a seat beside Aerith who offered her a drink. She took the cold glass of barley tea from the kind woman. Her eyes stared at the fight between Yuffie and Leon. Her eyes were staring, but her mind was wondering off.

It's been almost two months since she last heard of Xion and Riku.

Roxas no longer joined in the search with her since he began to search with Axel. The Nobody looked so sad and uneasy when he told her the news. At first, Hikari was disappointed, but she knew that it was normal for Roxas to pick Axel. She didn't mind looking for Xion by herself and told him that they would find her faster if there were two groups looking for her. The Nobody sometimes visited, but not as frequently as before. She just hoped that because of the less visits, their friendship won't grow distant.

She sometimes got a surprised visit from Axel, but their meetings always ended with Axel coming up with an excuse when asked about Xion.

Axel knew something about Xion that both Roxas and herself don't.

He was hiding something and she's going to find out what.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

' _Never thought I'd visit this world again…'_

Hikari stared at the wooden cottage a few meters away from her. It had almost been one year since she last visited the world. She had thought about visiting Snow White a few times, but the thought of the dwarfs stopped her—specifically Grumpy. She knew that she should've pushed the past behind, but she was being inconsiderate. If she could forgive Roxas and Riku, then forgiving Grumpy would've been a piece of cake.

Dwarf Woodlands is one of the worlds that she hasn't actually searched to look for Xion and Riku. As far she knows, neither of them had visited the world—so she decided to skip the world a few times. It was time she decided that it was best to look at all the worlds rather than just a selected few.

' _Nothing seemed to change.'_ Hikari observed the surroundings. There were flowers blooming and the small stream seemed to be flowing smoothly. From a brief look, there seemed to be nothing weird going around. She stopped right at the door, raising her right hand to knock.

"Oh my, what a surprise!"

The brunette turned around and her eyes widened. "Snow White!" she exclaimed as a smile appeared on her lips.

Snow White giggled. "It's been a while, hasn't it, Hikari?" she walked a little closer, a kind smile across her red lips. She blinked a few times when Hikari stood in front of her. She tilted her head left and right, staring at the younger girl's face. "My, my, someone seems to be taller!" she said.

Hikari laughed. "You think so?" she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. She had noticed that she grew a few inches during the past year, but she never expected anyone would've noticed. Compared to Leon, Cloud and Cid, she was so short. Not to mention that Riku has been getting taller each time they see each other. Actually, compared to the adults, as much as she hates to admit it, she was short. "Thanks for noticing!" she grinned.

"Your hair seemed to be longer, are you growing it out?" Snow White asked, looking at the brunette's hair going slightly over her shoulders.

Hikari touched the tips of her hair, rubbing it between her fingers. "…I'm actually planning to cut it short later. It just sorta slips my mind." She admitted. With all of the things that has been happening around her, a visit to the salon has always slipped her mind. Ever since she was little, she has kept the same style and length of hair. Most of her friends had told her that she should change her hairstyle, but she refused saying that she liked her style best. "Thanks for reminding me." She thanked again.

The young woman let out a small gasp. "Oh, where are my manners!" she went over to the door, pushing the small door open. "Please, do come inside." she invited the teen inside the small cottage.

The brunette didn't have it in her heart to decline.

"Do you visit the dwarfs often?" Hikari asked, looking around the small house. It was old, but at the same time cozy and warm. The house was as clean as ever and everything was organized neatly. She pulled out a small chair and sat down, watching Snow White pace around the room. "You don't have go through all this trouble—" she said when she saw Snow White preparing tea.

"Oh, nonsense! You are my guess." Snow White giggled, pouring the hot water into a smaller glass. "You see, I visit my little friends often. I can't just leave them be." She said as she cut a piece of leftover cranberry pie.

"Hmm," Hikari hummed in reply. "That's great." She said, taking the glass of tea.

"How about you?" Snow White asked.

The brunette blinked. "A lot of things happened…" she sighed a little, her posture slackened. She doesn't know when things would actually calm down. It almost as if another problem appeared after another, but the last problem hasn't been solved. She doesn't actually know who to put first. Her three missing friends from the past, her two missing friends—or her brother and his friends. They were all important to her and she can't exactly choose who to help first. "But I guess I can get through it! I know I can do it." she added cheerfully.

Snow White smiled. "I'm sure you can! If you ever need any help, there's always everyone around you."

Hikari nodded. "Yeah."

"We're back!"

Both Hikari and Snow White turned their head to the direction of the door.

"Oh, welcome back!" Snow White greeted the little men.

Doc was the first one that went inside. He stopped abruptly when his eyes saw a visitor sitting in the small dinning room. The others bumped into him and tilted their head to the side to look at the girl.

"It's you!" Grumpy exclaimed loudly, pointing his finger accusingly.

Hikari gave him a deadpan look. "Hello to you too, Grumpy." She said in a flat tone, taking a sip from her tea.

"What is she doing here?!" Grumpy demanded, marching over to the girls.

Snow White bends down. "Don't be so grumpy, Grumpy! Hikari is here to pay us a visit! It has been awhile since we last saw her." she chided with a small frown gracing her lips. "Now be nice." She ordered, standing up.

Grumpy turned his head away. "Bah! I don't need to be nice to someone who lets those creatures in!" he huffed as he crossed his arms.

"But Grumpy, it wasn't her fault." Sleepy said after a loud yawn.

Doc nodded his head in agreement. "We were so cat—cau—caught up in the moment that we accused this innocent girl for something that she didn't do." He said as he turned his head to look at the girl. He took a few steps closer, standing a foot away from the girl sitting on the low chair. "We apologize, my dear. We hope that you would forgive us." He took off his hat and bowed his head in shame—with the others except Grumpy following suit.

Hikari stared at Doc before glancing at the others. "Don't worry, Doc. We all couldn't think straight at that time." she stood up from her chair and kneeled in front of the bespectacled dwarf. "I'd say we all start over again! What do you say?" she grinned, holding her hand out for Doc to shake.

"We'd love to." Doc smiled, taking Hikari's hand and gave a handshake.

The rest gave a whistle and the little men surrounded Hikari, shaking her hand up and down a few times. Snow White joined in the laughter as she clapped her hands in joy. Grumpy stood at the sidelines, his face scrunched up in a sour look. The rest calmed down and looked at Grumpy, crossing their arms as they furrowed their eyebrows at the grumpiest.

Snow White placed her hands on her hips. "Now, Grumpy, what do you say?"

Grumpy groaned. "Gah, fine! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, happy now?" he said angrily. Turning his head to glare at the brunette before turning his head to look back at the corner.

Hikari rolled her eyes. "Geez, no need to be rude, _Cap' Grumpy Troll_." She huffed out with her arms crossed, the corner of her lips twitching up to a smile.

The small man's shoulders seemed to stiffened. "What did ya just call me?" he turned his head slowly to look at the girl, the others following him.

" _Cap' Grumpy Troll_? Oh c'mon! Did ya already forget? It's only been ten or so years!" Hikari complained childishly. Namine told her to never tell anyone that she knew and remembers her own past until the time is right, but this time—it was the right time to tell the dwarves.

"T—The only one who calls Grumpy that is…" Sneezy trailed off, glancing at each other before his eyes landed on the brunette.

"Is there something wrong?" Snow White tilted her head in confusion.

Doc turned his head from Snow White to Hikari. "You see, there's this sweet little girl who visited us not long after you were awoken by Prince Florian." He explained, taking his glasses off to wipe them with the hem of his shirt. "I thought that you looked oddly familiar, but I'd never thought that after all these years—"

"A friend helped me remember." Hikari stopped Doc from stammering any further. "That's why I'm able to remember you guys again!" she flashed them a bright grin. "Wait—did Doc just call me a sweet little girl? Can you say that again so I can rub it in Yuffie's face—?" she paused.

Dopey jumped up and down in excitement, pointing at his hat a few times.

"Sorry, Dopey… I kinda lost the hat…" Hikari apologized. There wasn't anything left of the hat Dopey gave for her. She remembers bringing the burned cloth back home, but after that she believed that it was thrown out. "But that hat will always have a special place in my heart." She said dramatically, placing a hand over her heart.

Dopey nodded his head with a smile.

Hikari turn her attention back to the grumpy dwarf. "What's the matter, Grumpy? Too surprised for words?" she smirked.

The man snapped out of his daze. "Bah! I'm just disappointed that you grew up to be this type of rude child!" he huffed out, rolling his shoulders with a big frown.

The brunette lost her balance. "Hey! Who are ye calling rude?!" she raised her fist jokingly. She knew that from the tone and character Grumpy has, that he was only joking.

"But I suppose it's _great_ to see you remember." The man added lowly, grumbling underneath his breath.

"What was that, Grumpy?" Bashful cupped his ear along with Happy and Dopey.

Grumpy turned around angrily at them, raising his fist up. "Your ears need to be check! I ain't gonna repeat myself!"

"Oh, Grumpy." Snow White giggled behind her hand. "Always the same."

Hikari smiled a little before turning to look at Doc. "There's something that I need to ask you guys… it's actually one of the reasons I came."

"Anything we can do to help?" Doc asked.

"Has there been anything weird going on around here? Anything out of place?" Hikari asked. Finding Xion and Riku were on her top list, but this was one of her mission to find out what the Organization was up to. Lately, Mickey has been seeing members of the Organization going around the worlds. They weren't collecting hearts or causing trouble, but it was getting suspicious. To figure out Organization XIII mysterious activities, Yen Sid sent both Mickey and Hikari to investigate. "Other than the Heartless of course." She added.

The dwarfs looked at each other.

"W—Well, there's this man." Bashful began.

"A man?" Hikari echoed, an eyebrow arched up.

Sleepy nodded his head. "Yeah, he's been wondering 'bout everywhere here." He continued for Bashful with Dopey nodding his head along.

The brunette scratched the back of her head. "Uh… you guys have to be more specific…" she laughed a little. It could just be a normal guy walking around lost, but it did get her attention a little.

Sneezy sniffled, rubbing his runny nose. "He got long silver hair! Longer than our beards together!" he described.

"Silver hair?" Hikari's heart stopped a beat. Silver hair was not that common, a long-haired male to put it at that. The dwarfs could just be exaggerating with the length of hair of the described man, but the only person she knew with long silver hair was Riku since he has been growing it out since last year. "Did this guy wear black a lot?" she asked.

"Why yes! He's been wondering around the mine a lot—though he never seemed to have any intentions of hurting us." Doc replied.

Grumpy turned his head. "You know this guy?"

Hikari hummed. "Maybe… I think he's my friend, but I'll have to make sure." She stood up, glancing over to the seven dwarves and to Snow White. "I have to go now. Thanks for everything guys."

Snow White nodded. "Please be careful, Hikari." she said.

"Do come back and visit soon!" Doc added, smiling at the teen.

"Of course." Hikari grinned, waving her hand goodbye.

The brunette quickly made her way through the forest and to the mountain trail. On the way to the mine, there weren't that many Heartless around. It made things easier for her to pass through. She had used her rod instead of the Starseeker. Even though Leon had told her to start using her keyblade to gain confidence in her own skills, she did it out of habit.

She arrived at the mountain trail, completely out of breath. She panted—glancing left and right to find her silver-haired friend. The area was empty with the exception of herself. Her blue eyes caught something move from the corner. She turned sharply only to find a single black feather at the middle of the path.

Hikari approached the feather, picking it up with one hand. She observed the feather and let out a heavy sigh, dropping it back down. There were many crows flying around and it was normal to find black feathers lying around. She turned to look at the entrance of the mine, thinking to look inside before calling it a day. She had been going around the worlds for a few hours and it was time to call it a day.

The brunette stopped when she felt a sudden change in the atmosphere around her. There was someone else besides her and that someone wasn't Riku. It felt cold and heavy, the sudden change made her almost shiver. When she turned around, there wasn't anyone behind her, but the amount of stray black feathers has increased.

She tilted her chin up, looking up at the higher ground.

There was a man there, staring down at her with a smirk on his lips.

The dwarfs weren't making things up.

Long silver-haired—longer than the dwarfs' beards combined.

Dark clothes from head to toe.

She had seen this man before. At Hollow Bastion.

Seconds passed and neither of them made the first move.

"Hey—" Hikari almost jumped in surprise when the man jumped down—landing gracefully on the ground. Out of instinct, she took a step back, standing in a defensive position before relaxing a little. The man closed his eyes as he made his way forward, walking with a steady pace. "Uh… Hey, you're from Hollow Bastion…right?" she asked a little unsure.

She was sure that this guy was the same one she saw in Hollow Bastion.

The man stopped, his back facing her.

"How did you get here anyway?" Hikari asked. Without access to a gummi ship or a Star Shard, it was impossible to travel. The brunette's eyes widened when there was another option left out—the Dark Corridors. She shook her head, shaking the negative thoughts away. it was wrong of her to just assume things. Just because the man in front of her seemed like the typical evil villain, doesn't mean that he's actually evil.

"I should ask you the same question, little girl." The man replied, turning around. The single black wing on his back spread widely—causing a small gush of wind around him.

Hikari rubbed the back of her neck, ignoring the wing on his back. "Well… I have something that allows me to travel…" she trailed off, debating whether or not she should bring out the topic of other worlds to someone. Though it was alright to interact and help, Yen Sid did warn her that she shouldn't speak of other worlds. Then again, this man did travel from Hollow Bastion to Dwarf Woodlands. He must've known of the existence of other worlds. "Is there something that you're looking for? I heard from the dwarfs that you've been wondering around here." She asked, changing the topic.

"Cloud Strife."

The brunette instantly froze.

This man—

Is the one that Cloud was looking for.

The man who 'embodies all the darkness.'

"Cloud?" Hikari pointed to the sky, pretending not to hear Cloud's surname. She had heard the man say Cloud's name loud and clear. Something in her gut just tells her that it would be a bad thing to tell the man that she knew Cloud. She laughed, "You mean cloud with stripes, right? I don't think you'll ever find pink and purple striped clouds around here. Unless, of course, if you count cotton candy."

A smirk was seen on the man's lips. "I have a feeling you know who Cloud is." He suddenly drew out a sword out of nowhere.

Hikari's eyes widened in surprise as she took a step back. She quickly summoned her rod and lowered herself to a fighting stance. It was clear that this man was not someone she should take lightly.

The silver-haired man dashed forward, his long sword drew back. Hikari raised her rod and blocked the man's attack a few times. She ducked down, barely dodging the sword aimed at her head. She sidestepped to the right to avoid a foot to her face. The man was fast on his hands and feet. He kept on attacking and there was no sign of him stopping anytime soon.

The brunette aimed her rod at the man, the head glowing a faint red before shooting multiple fireballs. She watched as the man easily dodged them while slashing the fireballs that went too close. The man raised his sword and swung it across, creating a powerful gush that was enough to cut though rocks. Hikari dodged rolled away from the slash. It made a huge damage to the rocks behind her. The area was covered in a small cloud of dirt and dust.

Hikari quickly raised her rod, when she heard rapid footsteps coming closer inside the cloud.

Their weapons clashed, creating a spark between the two metals.

The silver-haired man easily overpowered the brunette. He flicked his wrist and quickly knocked the girl's weapon right out of her hand. He didn't give her any time to recover as he quickly pulled back and thrust his sword forward, aiming for her heart.

Hikari dodged his attack, moving aside as a faint glow appeared in her hand. The Starseeker materialized as she hits the long sword down, holding it to the ground with force. She dragged the keyblade up the sword and swung her keyblade at the man's head.

The man jumped back, avoiding the hit.

The man's eyes glanced over to look at the weapon in the girl's hand. "That's… an interesting sword you have." He commented monotonously.

Hikari panted tiredly. "Heh, that's not the first time I heard it." She shifted the keyblade to a better position.

The man smirked. "Play time's over then."

' _That was play time?!'_ Hikari eyes widened as her grip tightened. She gritted her teeth as she braced herself for another attack.

The silver-haired man lunged forward.

Before Hikari could even counter his attack, another figure appeared inside the battle field, standing right in front of the brunette to block the silver-haired man's sword. Hikari's eyes were wide as plate as she stared at the mysterious figure's back. He wore an Organization XIII cloak with his hood pulled up. She knew immediately that this mysterious figure was Riku. No Organization member aside from Roxas, Xion and maybe Axel would interfere in a fight.

"Riku!" Hikari shouted as Riku battled the man's strength. She recovered from her shock and quickly move from behind Riku, swinging her keyblade to attack.

The man had no choice to retreat. "Hmph." He scoffed.

Hikari stood beside Riku, her eyes glancing over to him and then over to her right when she felt someone standing beside her. "Xion?!" she exclaimed in shock at the sight of the Nobody who has been missing for almost two months. " _We_ have a lot to talk about after this." She said, turning to look at the enemy.

Xion looked down, "I know…"

A smirk appeared on the silver-haired man's lips. "What makes you think that all of you would walk out alive?" he raised his sword above his head. "Now, beg for your lives."

The three of them jumped to opposite directions when the man charged at them. With Riku and Xion on her side, Hikari was positive that they could win against the winged man. The man won't stand a chance against three keyblade wielders. The three keyblade wielders was holding up quite well against the man. All the man did was block their attacks, though he seemed to be taking the three of them as jokes. He wasn't putting as much effort as them when fighting.

Riku ran towards where the fight between the man and the two girls were fighting. The two girls tried to distract the man while Riku went for the finishing blow. Earlier today, he planned to finally visit Hikari, but she wasn't in Hollow Bastion. He heard from Merlin that Hikari wanted to visit Dwarf Woodlands to look for him and Xion. When he got there, he didn't expect Hikari to be picking a fight with some unknown man who would possibly be a serial killer.

' _There!'_ Riku thrust his keyblade forward, finding an opening.

The man tilted his head to the left, his eyes staring into Riku's blindfolded eyes. He grabbed his wrist in one swift movement—tightening his hold around it until the keyblade wielder drop his keyblade. In a second flat, the man's hand was around Riku's neck, his grip tightening in every passing second.

"Riku!" Hikari shouted when she heard Riku's grunt of pain. She stared in horror as the winged man smirked at her before lifting Riku up into the air almost as if he was a bag of potatoes. The man floated into the air, taking Riku with him. "You let him go!" she demanded, glaring at him.

"With pleasure."

In a terrifying second, the man threw Riku down. Hikari quickly dashed towards the falling Riku, her arms stretched in front of her to catch him. She jumped and caught him just a few seconds before he hits the ground. She turned her body around, taking impact to the ground first to protect her friend from the harsh landing. She skidded to a stop, cradling Riku close to her.

"Riku! Hikari!" Xion turned her attention to the two, worry written all over her face.

"Riku! You okay?!" The brunette quickly recovered, pulling down the silver-haired teen's hood.

Riku's face scrunched up in pain. "Yeah…" he replied, reaching his hand up to rub his neck.

They didn't have much time to recover.

Hikari turned her attention to the man and she jumped up to her feet, standing right in front of Riku. She raised her keyblade just in time to block the blue beams made from the slashing sword. The brunette stared at the man's sharp cat-like green eyes—glaring at him. Her eyes widened when the man suddenly turn his attention to Xion.

"Hikari! Riku—!" Xion stopped on her tracks.

The brunette threw her keyblade at Xion's direction, using point warp for the very first time in battle. She had been training point warp—or as Yen Sid called it, teleport—for quite a while and although she can't actually point-warp that far, she managed to reach Xion's side in a mere second. The silver-haired man didn't seem to be surprised when Hikari suddenly appeared in front of his target.

Hikari stood in front of Xion. The brunette raised her keyblade in front of her to block the black fireballs. The fireballs exploded right after it made contact with Hikari's keyblade, sending both the girls back with Hikari taking the hit first.

"Hikari!" Xion was the first to recovered. She quickly went over to the younger girl, turning her over. She sat beside the brunette, starring worriedly at her. "Cura!"

Riku turned to glare at the man. He reached his hand up—ready to take his blindfold off to face him.

A chuckle was heard. "It seems that I have touched a nerve."

Riku growled.

"I admit, I have underestimated you children." The man lowered his sword and turned around on his heels. "A shame for children like you to be wasting your talents playing around like this." He continued as black feathers surrounded him in a small vortex.

"You—!"

"Until we meet again."

The feathers dispersed in a strong gush of wind with the man inside the vortex no where to be seen.

Riku clicked his tongue in annoyance before he turned around, making his way to his friend. He kneeled down beside Hikari, his eyes gazing over to look at the girl's face.

Xion held Hikari close to her. "Why… Why did she do that?" she whispered.

The silver-haired teen stayed quiet. "Just like what I've said, you're a friend she's willing to risk her life for."

Xion looked down. The brunette stirred in her arms, slowly going back to consciousness. The very first thing she said was:

"…did we win?" she asked with a weak laugh.

Riku shifted closer, looking down at his friend. "Not really, but he forfeits." He said with a small smile.

The young keyblade wielder slowly sat up. "I was kinda hoping that you would wipe the floor with him." she sighed in disappointment. She really thought that Riku would've won against the mysterious man.

The silver-haired teen turned serious. "Do you know who he is?"

"Not a clue." The brunette shrugged.

"Why…" Xion whispered, clutching her coat as she looked down. Both Riku and Hikari looked over to her as they both waited for her to continue. "Why would you just risk your life to save a Nobody like me? Who am I to you, Hikari?" she raised her chin, staring into Hikari's eyes.

The keyblade wielder smiled. "You're one of my best friends. I just had to do it." she said as she placed a comforting hand on the Nobody's shoulder. She looked over to Riku too, giving him a smile as well. She looked determined, as a grin replaced her smile. "I won't just stand back and let my friends get hurt when I'm standing right in front of them. If I just stand back, what kind of friend am I?"

"But—" Xion paused.

"If it was reversed… you guys would probably do the same too." Hikari said, laughing a little.

Riku sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You were this close to getting yourself killed. _Again_." he held out his hand, his thumb and finger almost touching. When Hikari just shrug at his question he crossed his arms. "At this rate, I'm going to lose you before I even hit seventeen." He frowned deeply.

The brunette looked away. "At least I didn't die or anything." She huffed out.

" _Or anything_." Riku mimicked. "You got _injured_." he pinched Hikari's cheek, making her look at him.

"This wound means nothing compared to how long you left me." Hikari remarked, looking away as a frown appeared on her lips.

Both Riku and Xion looked at each other. "Sorry…" they both apologized.

Hikari turned to look at them, taking a deep breath. "I was just really worried—you guys suddenly disappeared without any word and here you guys are, after months of being missing."

"Sorry…" Xion apologized again.

"Just… don't do it again…" Hikari whispered, covering her face with her hand. She took a few moments of silence before taking a deep breath. She placed her hand on top of Xion's, a small smile on her lips. "Let's go back. Roxas' really worried about you. He wouldn't stop—"

"I can't." Xion pulled her hand away as she avoided to make eye contact with Hikari. The look across Hikari's face was so heartbroken, making it more difficult to look at her. "Not with the way I am now…" the Nobody continued.

Riku placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Hikari—"

"I don't know what's going on—and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Hikari just missed seeing her two friends. She didn't know what made her so desperate to be with Riku and Xion. Before—when Riku never came to visit her for months, she was fine with it, but now she felt more emotional than before. Perhaps it was just because she didn't know of their condition until now. "But—please let me stay with you."

There was someone else she saw when she looked at Xion.

It wasn't her brother, nor was it Kairi.

A blond boy that has the same face as Roxas.

And yet she was much more similar to him than Roxas.

 _Ventus._

"I just want to make sure you're still there."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The journey with Riku and Xion was something Hikari never expected.

It had only been a day and she could already see how well both Riku and Xion worked together. Hikari didn't know much behind the meaning of them both traveling together, but it was some sort of journey to find their own path or something alike. They didn't stay in one world for too long. It was no wonder why Hikari nor Roxas could find either of them.

Apparently, Riku didn't let Xion see either Sora or Namine—since he didn't want to take any chances. Their relationship never changed. Xion acted normal around her—almost as if nothing ever happened. Hikari was glad that her relationship with both her friends haven't change, but she can't help but feel as if they were hiding something from her.

"Hikari—"

The brunette turned her head to look at her tall friend. "Yeah?"

Riku shook his head, a small smile on his face. "Daydreaming again?" he asked and Hikari pulled a face—looking at him with a deadpan look. "Anyway, I was asking if you want to take a break." He asked.

"A break? What for? I barely did anything!" Hikari huffed out childishly. Riku and Xion were always ready when Heartless came across their path. She didn't even have enough time to summon her keyblade and they were already finished. "You guys never let me join in the action." She crossed her arms, pouting.

Xion patted Hikari's shoulder. "You just recently got injured. We'll let you join tomorrow when you're at a hundred percent." She smiled.

"But I am already at a hundred percent!" Hikari argued, summoning her keyblade as proof. She raised it over her head and looked over to Riku as he raised an eyebrow at her with his arms crossed. The brunette let out a loud sigh, summoning away her keyblade. "Fine… Whatever you say, _mom_ …" she mumbled as she took a seat on top of a wooden crater.

Riku ruffled Hikari's hair roughly. "I _heard_ that."

"Gah!" Hikari shoved his hand away as a giggle from the black-haired girl was heard. She gave Riku the stink eye as he began to chuckle. The brunette couldn't help but smile as she combed her hair with her fingers. Hearing them laugh was music to her ears. In the first hour of her traveling with Riku and Xion, the two of them were so serious. She was glad that she could somehow lighten the mood. "So, where are we going next?" she asked.

She wondered if they would visit Hollow Bastion. She hadn't told anyone that she would be gone for more than a few hours. Though, she already expected Merlin to know something was up and started covering for her absent. Merlin didn't have to, but he did it anyways. She felt more guilty for leaving Destiny Islands for almost a year without telling anyone of her whereabouts. She sometime watches her family and friends from afar to check on them, but that wasn't fair of her to leave. It felt weird for her to return to her own home world without her own brother and Riku.

Everyone _forgot_ who Sora is.

Hikari was slowly remembering who he is.

"Beast's Castle." Riku announced, leaning against the wooden crater behind him. "We're going to patrol. Xion said that Xaldin has been sent back and forth over there for a few times."

Xion nodded. "I don't know for sure… but I heard Saix giving him missions to do recon over there."

"Did ya guys ever come face to face with him?" Hikari asked, glancing over to Xion on her right and then to Riku on her left. She had never face any Organization members beside the ones in Castle Oblivion and both keyblade users.

The Nobody shook her head.

"One time." Riku replied, his arms crossed as his lips were set in a thin line. "He's a strong opponent."

Hikari gave a whistle—receiving a light shove from the eldest in the group. "Aw—! Hearing it from Riku… huh… Xaldin must've been a tough fight for you." She said, rubbing her arm at the spot Riku pushed her.

Riku turned to look away. "We can't underestimate Organization XIII—no matter how stupid looking one of them are." He said and Hikari raised an eyebrow at him.

Was he referring to Demyx?

Xion smiled a little. "Riku sort of got caught off-guard when he fought Demyx in Olympus Coliseum."

Hikari snorted in laughter. "Who was the one that kept telling me not to underestimate an enemy." She teased and Riku decided to ignore her. "You should listen to your own advice." She nudged him with her elbow a few times, sniggering behind her hand.

"Hush." Riku huffed out, giving Hikari a light shove.

"Hey—!"

" _Riku!_ "

Hikari was about to retort but quickly stopped when they heard voices. She looked over to both her friends and there were no longer smiles on their faces. The two of them pulled their hoods up and Hikari followed. She somehow recognized the voice, but she can't actually figure out who it belonged to. The voice shouted Riku's name, which means it has to be one of their friends.

The brunette peeked around the corner and her eyes widened when she saw her other two friends in the alley.

Roxas and Axel.

Hikari quickly clamped her hand over her mouth to prevent herself from screaming their names out in shock. It was to be expected since Twilight Town is their usual hangout world—but Twilight Town is a fairly large town and there was a slim chance for them to meet in this time at the day. She retreated, her back pressed against the wall as she looked over to Riku and Xion. Riku looked fine, but Xion on the other hand…

"Xion, you okay?" Hikari quietly asked as she placed her hand on the Nobody's shoulder.

The black-haired girl gave a slow nod as her hands trembled.

"They're coming this way." Riku warned them—urging both Xion and Hikari to get ready.

"Xion—if you're not ready to face them… then don't. I'm not going to force you to do something you don't want… Let me handle them." Hikari announced, looking into Xion's worried blue eyes. She knew so little about Xion, but she wasn't going to let that come between their friendship. She didn't want to pry into Xion's personal life if she doesn't want to tell it to her and she'll wait until the day Xion will wat to tell her. "I'll buy you some time… I'll be _Xion_ and distract them with Riku while you find a safe place to hide." She continued.

"But—" Xion tried to argue, but she stopped when she realized Hikari was right. She wasn't ready to face her two friends. She pursed her lips before turning around on her heels. "Thank you…" she said under her breath, running towards another part of the alley.

Riku quickly knocked over a few pipes, covering for Xion's footsteps. "Get ready." He said to Hikari who nodded in return.

"Who—?"

They both could clearly see the spiky redhead and the blond. They looked more surprised than they were.

Roxas' eyes landed on the brunette. "Xion?" he took a step forward. There was a hopeful look in his eyes.

 _Xion_ or Hikari took a few steps back and quickly turn around on her heels to run towards the opposite direction from where Xion had ran off to.

"Xion, wait!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

-the next day-

' _I… know that was Xion I saw yesterday.'_

It was yet another solo mission for Roxas. The impostor had been sighted in Twilight Town yet again. He has been tasked to eliminate the impostor on the spot if he engaged him in battle. It all began yesterday when he found Xion and the impostor together in the alleys. Both him and Axel have chased Xion and the imposter through the Underground Passage, until they decided to run away using the Dark Corridors.

Roxas was angry and upset when Saix told Axel that he has the permission to use force to bring Xion back to the Organization. He believed that Axel wouldn't do such a thing to his own friend, but somehow in the bottom of his nonexistence heart, he began to doubt.

' _Why was she with the impostor?'_ Roxas stopped walking as he looked down. His mind was drawing a complete blank. He couldn't think of anything at the moment. _'Why didn't she try to get away from him?'_ he sighed.

The Nobody glanced up when he sensed somebody was watching him. A hooded figure was looking down at him from afar.

"Huh?" Roxas narrowed his eyes as he tried to focus on the figure. His eyes widened when he noticed that the figure was wearing the Organization's cloak. It would either be the Impostor or Xion. He gasped when he saw the cloaked figure move back and began to ran at the opposite direction. "H—Hey!" he shouted.

Roxas quickly chased after the cloaked figure. He chased the figure around Twilight Town, with having a few close calls of losing sight of the figure. From afar, he noticed the stance to be similar to Xion. Knowing that it could possibly be Xion, he became more determined to catch her.

He managed to chased her into the south alcove in the Tram Commons.

"Xion?" Roxas panted tiredly as he placed his hands on his knees for support. He took a few deep breaths and straightened his posture when the figure pulled down her hood. Relief washed over his face when he saw that it was indeed Xion underneath the hood. "Xion… Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you." He took a few steps closer, a smile on his face.

Xion glanced over to him. "You have? Sorry…" she apologized before looking away.

Roxas gave a smile, offering his hand for her to take. "Let's go home. If you come back voluntarily, Saix definitely won't be mad." he said and his smile disappeared when Xion didn't replied. He knew that Saix disliked Xion for quite a while. His smile returned, giving reassurance to her. "If he says anything bad to you, Axel and I will come protect you!"

"We'll make sure—" Roxas let out a gasp when Xion suddenly took a step back.

Xion pursed her lips as she avoided eye-contact. "I… really can't."

"Why… not?" Roxas asked as he reached his hand out to grab Xion's shoulder. The girl flinched away and he quickly retreated his hand back, afraid that she would run away if he touched her. Silence fell between them before Xion decided to turn around and run away. "Wait!" he grabbed her hand, preventing her from running away.

 _Ka-shing_

Roxas' eyes widened, slowly releasing Xion's hand when he saw her summoning the keyblade. He took a few steps back as Xion raised her keyblade to point it directly at him.

"X—Xion what—?" Roxas stammered, too shocked for words. "This is… a joke, right?"

Xion didn't dare to look at Roxas. She turned around and blocked a single chakram being thrown at her. It bounces right off her keyblade, dropping to the ground with a loud clang before disappearing in red flames.

"Just when I'd thought we'd finally found you..." Axel came walking down the stairs, a frown on his face. "What in the world is going on now?"

Roxas blinked confusedly. "Axel?"

Axel turned his attention to the black-haired girl. "If your mind's made up, then I have no choice but to take you on." He said.

Roxas stood in front of Xion defensively. "Axel, stop! It's not like that!" he defended.

"You sure? She just drew her keyblade against you!"

The red head turned his attention back to Xion when she suddenly charged at him, swinging her keyblade at his head. He ducked down and his chakrams appeared in his hands in a swirl of flames. He countered Xion's attack with his own. The two of them didn't seem to be holding back when they began to fight each other, leaving Roxas in the dust.

"What is going on?" Roxas kept glancing back and forth between his two best friends. They were fighting each other and he didn't know why. He once heard from Hikari that best friends do sometimes fight, but not to the point of killing each other. He didn't know how to come between the fight. He was just too confused on what was going on around him. "STOP!" he shouted.

"Please… stop it… you both." Roxas crouched down, holding his head in pain. He didn't know where the pain came from, but he suddenly felt a sharp pain to his head when Axel and Xion started to fight each other.

Xion abruptly stopped. She looked over to the blond, a guilty look across her face.

Before she could even say anything, Axel appeared behind her, striking a nerve behind her neck. The girl fell limp into the redhead's arm.

"Xion!" Roxas ran over to them, stopping Axel from going through the Dark Corridor. "Axel wait!"

The redhead stopped, looking over his shoulder to the blond.

"You didn't have to attack her like that, did you?!" Roxas stopped a few feet away, glaring at the redhead.

Axel sighed. "If I didn't make my move, we'd both be gonners."

Roxas' eyes widened, "That not possible…" he said in disbelief. He didn't believe that Xion would've killed him and Axel. He couldn't believe that Axel had such a thought that Xion had really betrayed them. He believed that Xion had her own reasons. "Aren't we supposed to be best friend?!" he shouted.

There was a moment of silence between them.

"That's not the problem, Roxas." Axel answered.

"Then what is?!"

Another sigh escaped the redhead's lips. "I'm sorry, Roxas. I'm heading back first." He turned around and walked through the dark corridor, leaving the blond behind to ponder on his own.

Roxas breathed deeply, staring at the spot where both Axel and Xion had left.

There was just so many things going through his head.

He never felt so betrayed.

"Axel… Xion…"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari had been pretending to be Xion for two days. It wasn't fun being chased around Twilight Town, but she had to do it for Xion. She felt bad for keeping Roxas in the dark about Xion's whereabouts and then tricking him into believing that she is Xion. She felt that she had to think of Xion's feelings and not just Roxas. If she sided with Roxas then that would've mean she didn't care about Xion, but if she sided with Xion then that would've mean she didn't care about Roxas either. It was difficult to decide, but she choose to side with Xion until she was ready to face Roxas and Axel.

Earlier today, she had been chased by Roxas yet again. She had been running around Twilight Town—going through alleys as she tried to mislead him. she succeeded when Xion suddenly shows up, taking her place to continue.

Hikari was stopped by Riku when she wanted to chase after Xion. She could only watch as Roxas chased Xion into the south alcove.

"You've done enough." Riku placed his hand on her shoulder.

Hikari pulled her hood down. "Not enough to fix their friendship." She frowned, staring at the entrance of the south alcove.

"It's not your fault, Hikari." Riku reminded as the girl turned to look at him.

The brunette sighed. "Maybe not… but it's my duty as their friend to connect them back again."

Riku looked over to her. "…right." He turned around on his heels, heading for the direction of the Old Mansion. "Let's go."

Hikari took one last look at the south alcove before following Riku to the Old Mansion. She hadn't actually keep up with her promise to visit Namine often. Things had been rather busy and when does have time to visit, DiZ wouldn't allow her to bother Namine. Only during the times when DiZ is kind enough that he would allow Hikari to join Namine in the pod room. The visits weren't long too, they were close to ten minutes max.

She hoped that things would've been easier in the future, but it turned out to be more complicated than she had expected.

"Namine!" Hikari greeted with a grin when she spotted the girl inside the pod room. She ran inside the room first with Riku following behind her. The blonde girl was inside with DiZ. The brunette quickly stopped right in front of them, clearing her throat when she looked at the man. "Ehem… uh… hey, DiZ." She said, raising her hand awkwardly.

"Hello, Hikari." Namine replied with a smile.

DiZ didn't reply to her greeting. His single eye looked over to Riku waiting by the entrance. "I will leave you girls be for the time being." He said as he walked pass by Hikari, his hands behind his back.

Hikari and Namine watched as DiZ left the room with Riku.

As soon as the two left the pod room, Hikari turned to the blonde. "So, how are things going? I hope it's not _too_ boring with me not around." she joked, crossing her hands behind her neck. She had liked it better when they stayed at The Mysterious Tower. Yen Sid never gave restrictions when she wanted to visit Namine—in fact, she could visit her at any time and day. "It must've been boring for you to just stand here with DiZ. That guy never talks." She whispered to her, afraid that DiZ might overheard her.

"Oh, Hikari." Namine giggled, hiding it behind her slightly curled hand. "It's actually not that bad." She said as she turned to look at the flower shaped pod.

The brunette followed, staring to look at her brother. "How's Sora doing?" she asked as her eyes stayed at the brunet inside the pod.

Namine frowned a little. "Good…" she answered.

Hikari laughed. "That's great to hear!" she replied and a grin appeared on her face. "I just can't wait to remember him again." she smiled and turned to face the blonde.

The brunette does remember Sora, but only a little. She knew that he's her brother and she remembered a few things about him. At first, when Sora's memory restoration began—she couldn't even remember that she has a brother. As time passes, she slowly remembered him and she couldn't even be happier. Only a few selected people still have their memories of Sora.

"How's Donald, Goofy and Jiminy?" Hikari asked. She didn't forget about her three friends as well.

Namine smiled. "They're doing fine."

"Awesome! Just a little more time and we can all be together again." Hikari's hand went up to touch her earing. "I can't wait to introduce them to my new friends." The thought of Roxas and Xion meeting her brother and friends came across her mind.

The Nobody looked down.

"Oh yeah! You guys haven't met yet, have you?" Hikari turned to look at her. "One day, I'll introduce you guys to each other." she smiled.

"Yes…"

Hikari blinked confusedly. "What's wrong? You don't look happy…" she tilted her head when Namine kept on staring at the floor. She always thought that Namine wanted to go outside and meet new people. She could count the people Namine had interacted with and most of them were not good people. The only people that are her friends were Riku, Mickey, Yen Sid, the three fairies and Hikari herself, she didn't know if she could include DiZ. "They're really nice and all, promise! They're not like what you think."

The brunette pulled out her camera, searching through the gallery to look for a picture of Roxas, Xion and herself. "This one's Roxas. He's a really friendly guy—sometimes he acts like a mom, but that's okay. Oh, and this is Xion! She's like _the_ best driver in Rumble Racing!" she pointed her finger to the two Nobodies inside the picture. She let Namine hold the camera as she told her stories of her two friends. "I know they're from the Organization, but they're really nice and different from the ones in Castle Oblivion." She smiled.

Namine handed the camera back. "I…. would like to meet them."

 _Before they go back to Sora._

—was left unsaid.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"In the end you were able to force her back?"

Axel didn't reply to his blue-haired friend. He kept a straight unreadable look as he let the unconscious black-haired girl in his arms be taken away by his childhood friend.

"…is this really for the best?" Axel asked, stopping Saix from taking Xion away.

Saix turned around, sighing. "This doll or Roxas, which one of them is more important?" he asked as he held the puppet in his arms. When the redhead stayed quiet, the blue-haired man continued. "Or let me put it this way, which would you rather suffer the loss of: some make-believe friendship, or a real one."

The redhead looked away, unable to answer him.

"Things are finally right again." Saix said, his face devoid of all emotion. "Of course, we're better off this way. Lord Xemnas is exasperated from all the fixing we've had to do." He said flatly.

Axel closed his eyes as he turned around, walking away from the Hall of Empty Melodies.

"We have to set things right." Saix continued, making Axel stop on his tracks. "There is simply too much on the line… Lea."

The redhead continued to leave.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas returned back to the Castle of Never Was.

After Axel left with Xion, Roxas just couldn't think straight anymore. He quickly made up his mind and left to go find Hikari in Hollow Bastion. He needed someone to talk to and Hikari was the only one who would hear all his problems and gave him advice to solve it. Sadly, his brown-haired friend was said to not have returned from her mission.

Hikari has been searching for Xion harder than he was. She had looked for her every day. She spared her time to go look for her even though she could use that time to do something she likes. The girl was always there when either Roxas or Xion wanted to pour out their problems. Roxas was grateful that he has a friend like her to depend on.

The Nobody looked up when he heard footsteps echoing inside the hallways.

"Lord Xemnas…" It was a rare sight to see Xemnas walking inside the castle's hallways. The silver-haired man simply stopped a few feet away from the blond, waiting for him to continue. "I need to know…" the blond continued, gathering the courage to ask the almighty leader.

Xemnas stared down. "About?"

"Xion. Can you tell me what's wrong with her?" Roxas asked.

The man closed his eyes. "Put your mind at ease. Xion is a valued member of the Organization, but she needs her rest."

Roxas gasped when something flashed before his eyes. His thoughts went back to the time he met Xemnas in a dark beach. He didn't know where it was, but it felt so dark and cold—ways different from the beach Hikari took him where it was warm.

"Sora…" the blond blinked when that name slipped pass his lips so easily. He didn't know where that name came from. He just said it unconsciously. He turned to look at Xemnas when he heard a soft chuckle. "Who is…Sora?"

There was a smirk across Xemnas' lips. "He is the connection."

"Connection?" Roxas parroted.

"He is what makes you and Xion a part of each other's lives. Just as he is the reason I placed Xion among our number." The leader explained vaguely.

"I don't understand…"

"And if you want her to stay that way, I must insist you get your mind off these needless distractions." Xemnas continued. He took a few steps closer to the shorter Nobody, placing his hand on his shoulder. "I will have Xion return to her duties tomorrow. You'd best get some rest." He said before he left.

 _To think that she'd become the other key._

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari sighed for the umpteenth time that day.

Three days passed since she last saw Xion and Roxas. She didn't know what happened in that south alcove, but she hoped that her two friends had made up and forgive each other. She was hoping for a visit from Roxas, but there was none. She had hoped that Roxas would come down running towards her with good news that Xion returned.

"That's a long sigh." Yuffie commented, walking beside the girl. She couldn't really call her short again since she was almost as tall as her. "Somethin' on your mind?"

The brunette sighed again. "Just… complicated stuff." She said. They were on their way to the castle again. Leon had walked there first with Cloud. Speaking of the spiky haired blond, she hadn't told him of her encounter with his inner darkness. When she first returned back to Hollow Bastion, she wanted to talk with it with Cloud, but decided to wait for the right time. The last time they talked about this, Cloud suddenly turned dark. "Everything just became more and more complicated each day. I just want everything to be fine." She said.

"Don't we all want that?" Yuffie laughed. She seemed she doesn't get Hikari's real problems. It was to be expected. Yuffie never knew of Roxas and Xion's real identity, she just knew them as her other friends. Frankly, she thought that Hikari was talking about the problems the committee has. "Don't worry. All we need is get Cid's project to work and we'll get rid of those Heartless!" she grinned.

Hikari smiled, "I know."

Cid had been working on the Claymore Project non-stop and it was turning out to be a successful one. Sure, there has been a few glitches when he programed the software to attack the Heartless. During a test, it attacked Yuffie instead of the Heartlesss. It might have a few errors, but it was coming out nicely.

"C'mon, let's get—"

Hikari raised her chin when Yuffie suddenly became quiet. It was quite rare for Yuffie to be quiet. She frowned deeply when she saw a cloaked figure standing in the middle of the path. From the figure, she could definitely tell that it wasn't Roxas or Axel. He was built and tall, different from her two friends who she known so well by now.

"Who are you?" Yuffie asked, her hands on her hips. "This place is off limits!" she chided.

The cloaked figure raised his balled hand to the two girls. He opened his curled hand and something dropped. It dangled in the air with the man holding it by the woven string.

"That's…" Hikari's eyes went wide.

It was the good luck charm she and Roxas had made for Xion.

"YOU—!" Hikari stopped when she realized that she wasn't supposed to reveal her friendship to another Organization member. Then again, the man showed up out of nowhere to show off the charm she and Roxas made. He must've known of their relationship. "Give that back!" she charged at him, summoning her keyblade to attack.

"Hikari?!" Yuffie shouted in surprise.

The Organization member just stepped aside—dodging Hikari's attack. She quickly reached out her hand to snag the charm away from him. He pulled the charm away as his hand other hand began to emit a strange red light. A beam of red energy materialized from the palm of his hand. He thrust his hand down, aiming for Hikari's back. Hikari didn't had time to block his attack, but suddenly, a shuriken hits the energy sword, making it miss Hikari by a few centimeters.

Hikari quickly jumped back, skidding to a stop.

Yuffie caught her shuriken, a hand on her hip. "I don't know who you are, but you just picked a fight with the wrong girls!" she twirled the shuriken a few times before tightening her grip on the circle. "You better give that charm back or else!" she pointed her finger threateningly at him.

The keyblade wielder stared at her friend for a few seconds before turning her attention to the man. She straightened her posture and positioned herself to a fighting stance.

The man pocketed the charm before another red energy beam appeared on his palm. In a split second, the man reappeared right before the girls' eyes. The two of them quickly raised their weapons to block the red energy swords. They jumped back and lunged at him, swinging their weapons at him.

Hikari kept swinging her keyblade at him, all the while trying to reach for the charm in his pocket. She didn't know how this Organization member got his dirty hands on Xion's good luck charm, but she's determined to get it back. She tried to pounced on hi, but he disappeared in a blink of an eye. She dodged rolled away to break her fall and she turn around to block the man's attack from behind.

The brunette placed both her hands on the keyblade as she tried to push him back. She slowly extended her foot, planning to trip him. She swiped her leg under the man's ankle, knocking him down. She did a reverse somersault when he stabbed the energy blade to the ground, avoiding it by a second.

"Take this!" Yuffie swung her giant shuriken at the man, distracting him away from Hikari. "Pretty light on your toes, huh, Twinkle Toes?" she laughed.

Hikari quickly recovered and joined Yuffie in attacking the man. She dodged the sword and swung at him from bellow, attempting to strike at his stomach. Yuffie used Hikari's lowered back to dodge the man's blade. She jumped from her back and thrust her shuriken from above.

The man blocked their combined attacks before the two of them began to switch positions to attack him. The girls were light on their feet and they were pretty acrobatic when they dodged his attacks.

Hikari grabbed Yuffie's hand and helped gave her a boost, making her jump taller than normal. The black-haired ninja flipped a few times in the air before coming down with a strike. Her shuriken clashed with the man's blades, creating a spark between them. She jumped back, only to reveal Hikari was right behind her.

The brunette had used point warp to appear right in front of the man. Her keyblade slashed across the man's abdomen, making no choice for him to retreat back.

"Aha!" Yuffie shouted in triumph, taking the good luck charm from the spot the man had dropped it. She held the good luck charm Hikari has been desperate to take back. "This is why you shouldn't pick fights with us!"

The man glanced over to Yuffie and then turn his attention back to Hikari who seemed a lot more confident. He disappeared.

Hikari summoned her keyblade away, glaring at the spot where the man once stood.

"What a coward…" Yuffie scoffed. "He should've never—!"

The brunette's eyes widened when the Organization member suddenly reappeared right behind them. Yuffie was suddenly suspended in midair by some sort of energy ball. While as Hikari didn't had time to summon her keyblade to block his attack. She raised her hand, casting a barrier around herself when the blade hits the barrier. It exploded—sending the keyblade wielder back a few meters.

"Hikari!"

The keyblade wielder groaned in pain as she pushed herself up. She summoned her keyblade—using it as support for her to stand. Her breathing was heavy as she glared at the Organization member who had used Yuffie as a hostage.

"You'll pay…" Hikari lowered herself to a fighting stance.

The man raised Yuffie up a little higher.

"Choose." His voice was deep, making the brunette stiffened. This man is the one who told her to go to Castle Oblivion. He was the first Organization member she had met. "Your friend? Or the charm that you had put so much effort in making it for your cherished friend?" he asked.

"Of course, she'd pick the charm! Are you dumb or something?!" Yuffie shouted.

"Yuffie—!" Hikari hissed out, afraid that the Organization member would do something to her. She turned her attention back to the man. "Why are you making me choose? The answer's pretty obvious." She frowned.

The man snapped his fingers and Nobodies along with a few Heartless appeared surrounding Hikari. One of the Heartless threw itself to her. She quickly slashed it across, releasing the heart inside it. The other Heartless and Nobodies began to attack her, distracting her from her true objective to save Yuffie.

When she was busy with the group of Nobodies and Heartless, the man had raised Yuffie higher—until she was a few meters above ground. Hikari turned her attention to the man and her eyes widened when he raised his arm with his red blade pointed upwards at Yuffie. The energy ball holding yuffie up suddenly dispersed, making her fall.

Purple energy surrounded Hikari's keyblade before it surrounded her whole body. She threw her keyblade at the blade, point warping to the blade. She appeared just in time to grab Yuffie and save her from being stabbed by the energy blade. She shielded Yuffie from the impact as they landed on the ground with a loud thud.

"Yuffie! Hikari!"

Both Cloud and Leon had arrived in the scene, their swords drawn out as they battle their way across the Nobodies and Heartless.

Hikari pushed herself up, glaring at the Organization member.

 _Until we meet again, Hikari._

The man disappeared, leaving them behind.

"You okay, Yuff?" Hikari asked.

Yuffie rubbed the back of her head. "Yeah… Hey! What about the charm?"

Hikari glanced over to the place the man once stood. She stood up, walking closer to the charm on the ground. She kneeled down, picking up the broken pieces of the seashells.

"Aw man! I'm so sorry!" Yuffie apologized as she stared at the state the charm was in. "I should've hold on to it tighter! I'm sorry, Hikari!"

The brunette threw herself at Yuffie.

"It's alright, Yuffie." The charm meant nothing to her if her friend got hurt because of it. Sure, it was important, but Yuffie was more important to her than an inanimate object. She could always make another one for Xion and it could just be as important as it was like the last one. "I could always make another one, but you, Yuff, you're irreplaceable!"

Yuffie sniffled. "Aw shucks!" she returned the hug, wrapping her arms around the younger girl tightly.

"You girls, okay?" Leon came, staring worriedly at them.

Yuffie quickly jumped up to her feet. "You guys wouldn't believe what happened!"

Hikari stared down at the broken sea shells in her palm. The only seashells that was not broken was the pink one. She picked it up from the rest and pocketed it along with the woven string.

' _Xion…'_


	24. Chapter 24

A/N: a new chapter! Did you guys know about the special KH3 premiere event?! It looks so much fun!

thanks for all the reviews, reads, favorites and follows guys!

Guest: yup!

Guest 2: great idea!

Gry21: Lol! I'll think about it.

Majopi: it is :o

SwanGirl24: Thank you!

Stormfall: thanks!

Guest 3: I know about it, but I haven't really given it a try yet haha.

Dylvision: I think it's amazing! I can't wait to play it!

Ace: he definitely would.

Guest 4: You're right about that…

MemoryStornSanctuary: thank you so much!

Lulu9814: here's the next chapter~

Mysterygirl145: thank you for understanding. Lol! A scene with Sephiroth is just not the same without that theme song. He stole it haha

Guest 5: nope! That was teleport/point-warp.

theIrishWriter: I'm still thinking over it haha.

* * *

Chapter 24  
decision

* * *

"—then zap! He used this some sort of magic—"

Hikari wasn't really listening to Yuffie's story of the Organization member who attacked them. She sat quietly while staring at the Thalassa shell in her hand.

They returned back to Merlin's house to discuss the matter of the Organization member. It wasn't exactly the first time Hikari encountered them. She has faced the ones in Castle Oblivion and from what Roxas and Xion told her, the Organization never really bothered with picking fights with anyone if they don't have any interest. They rather stay in the shadows and collect hearts in secret—until now, that is.

When Leon and Cloud arrived to help out, the Organization member retreated and left more questions for the brunette to think about.

The Nobody definitely knew who she is, but she doesn't exactly have a clue to who he is.

"Hikari," A hand gently touched her shoulder, making her turn to look at Aerith. There was concern in the young woman's eyes. The thought of their youngest member being frequently targeted by an unknown group was enough to make her feel uneasy and worried. It was unsettling. "Is everything alright?" she asked as she took a seat beside the girl.

Hikari averted her gaze to look at the Thalassa shell. "Yeah…" she answered, rubbing her thumb against the shell. The broken charm was something that brought back old memories. It reminded her of the charm Ventus gave her, but it was crushed to pieces by the Masked Boy. She pocketed the seashell and turned to Aerith, a smile replacing her frown. "I was just thinking—you know about the Organization." She said.

Aerith folded her hands. "Are you sure?" she was unconvinced.

The younger brunette blew a raspberry. "Psssh! Of course! We can handle anything. Isn't that right, Yuff?" she turned to face the black-haired girl.

"Yup!" Yuffie replied as she threw her arms around Hikari, giving Aerith a grin. "We're tougher than you think!"

Leon sighed as he crossed his arms. "The Organization are becoming more active." He stated and everyone in the room turned to look at him. From the beginning of the restoration, not once did he hear anything about an Organization—that is until Hikari got into a fight with one of them a while back. It almost been a year and he just know about it recently. Not just him, but everyone else too. "Any idea why?" he asked, looking directly at the keyblade wielder.

"I dunno." Hikari gave a shrug, shaking her head. She truly didn't know why the Organization became more active. She knew that as time pass, things between Roxas, Xion and Axel had become more complicated, but she wasn't going to tell them that. She looked down and began to think of any possibilities. There was one, but she can't actually say it. The restoration of Sora's memories is nearly complete. At least, that's what she heard from Namine and Riku. "Maybe it's because we found Ansem's study." She suggested, looking around the room.

Aerith placed a hand on her chin. "But why would they have any interest in Ansem's study?" she mumbled, but the whole committee could hear it.

"His research probably." Cloud added a conclusion of his own.

Hikari hummed in thought before snapping her fingers as a thought came. "Or maybe one of the Organization member used to be Ansem's student or something!" She never remembered anything about Ansem the Wise having apprentices. She met the fourth member of the Organization from Castle Oblivion, but from what Axel told her—everyone in Castle Oblivion got wiped out. Meaning, that it was impossible that it was Vexen snooping around. Then again, Leon did mention there were other apprentices. "I mean, it's a slim chance, but who else would go through all the trouble to stop us from looking around?" she said.

Yuffie stared at her friend with her jaw slacked. "Oh my gosh…" she gaped, blinking owlishly as she tried to process Hikari's theory a few times. "Mind blown! That must be the smartest thing you've ever said."

"Hey!" Hikari gave her an offended look. "I'm offended!" she punched Yuffie on the shoulder, earning a loud 'aw' from her.

Cid rubbed his chin as his brows knitted together in thought. "I think you're on to something here, kid." he turned in his seat to face the computer. He began to type something in before opening folders after folders. The other committee members exchanged looks before gathering around the man. He dug through many folders before a picture popped up. Six people stood in a line, facing the camera. "I found this while browsing through the disks. A family picture of Ansem and his students." He said as he leaned back.

Hikari's eyes widened when she saw the faces of Ansem's apprentices. She recognized them all. They were all the people she had seen when she visited Radiant Garden with Ventus. She could definitely confirm that Vexen was inside the photo.

"Whoa—who are those dudes and the kid?" Yuffie asked as she placed her hands near the keyboard. "I know this one's Ansem." She said as she pointed to the person in the middle.

"Dilan, Even, Ienzo, Braig and Aeleus." Cid answered, moving the cursor to each of the person in order.

' _That's totally not Ansem…'_ Hikari thought as she stared intently at the people everyone claimed to be Ansem. She was certain that this was Terra—the Terra she faced at Castle Oblivion that is.

"Recognize someone?" Leon asked the brunette.

"That one." Hikari answered as she pointed at Even. "I faced him in Castle Oblivion, but I heard he was defeated."

Aerith folded her arms. "Which leaves us to five more…"

"Five?" Yuffie echoed, checking the photo again to see if her eyes were wrong. "From the photo, there's only four left." She pointed to each of the apprentices in the photo besides Even.

Cloud placed a hand on his hip. "You're forgetting about the sixth apprentice." His blue eyes stared at the photo along with the other committee members.

Cid sighed. "He's probably the one who took the photo."

Yuffie blinked confusedly. "Who are we talking about here?"

"The last apprentice, Xehanort."

Hikari's hand twitched as her eyes narrowed. She heard that name a few times now. From the Terra in Castle Oblivion and the other time from Yen Sid. From what she concluded—there were two different Xehanorts because the one she faced and the one Yen Sid mentioned couldn't be the same person. Otherwise the one in Castle Oblivion would be as old as Yen Sid.

She didn't want to assume Xehanort is the Leader just yet.

Why would the Organization Leader be named Xehanort?

She remembered Axel and Roxas mentioning his name was Xemnas, and not once did they ever mention the name Xehanort to her.

But she was sure that the memory of Terra-Xehanort was from the Organization Leader himself.

Something didn't add up.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas sighed deeply.

He sat alone in the Fountain Area waiting for his friend to show up. It was the first time in weeks that he payed Hikari a visit. He wanted to visit her sooner, but apparently, she was always absent from Hollow Bastion. He wanted to tell her to stop looking for Xion, but he can't seem to catch up with her. He hoped that she would visit the Fountain Area before she leaves the world again.

The Nobody had finished his mission early and decided to head straight to Hollow Bastion and not his usual hangout spot with Axel and Xion. For a few times he had visited the Clocktower, but neither Axel or Xion showed up and it made him feel like there was no point going there anymore.

"Now I know what Hikari feels…" Roxas exhaled loudly, looking down at his feet. He gasped when he noticed something different. He placed his hand over his heart. He remembered that Hikari used to wait in the Fountain Area for them—even though she knew they won't show up. "Wait— _feel_? Is this what she felt before?" he asked himself, his hand still over his chest.

"Roxas?"

The blond snapped his gaze up, staring at the person standing before him with wide eyes.

"Hikari?" he immediately stood up.

"It's been awhile, huh?" Hikari gave him a small smile. Her smile disappeared when Roxas' smile was absent from his lips. She had to admit. Lately, there hasn't been any good news between her friends. Things were turning for the worse if she could say it. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

Roxas looked away. "We found Xion." he said.

"That's great!" Hikari beamed happily. She was glad that Roxas found Xion. She knew that the two of them had meet in Twilight Town a week ago, but she never heard anything from them again. She just assumed that the two had worked things out with each other. She had been worried since the Organization member seemed to get a hold of Xion's good luck charm. It was still a complete mystery to her. "So, why the long face? Aren't you suppose to be happy that Xion came back?" she observed the frown on his face.

"I am—it's just things have been…odd." Roxas admitted with a deep sigh. He closed his eyes and an image of the beach Hikari took his to flashed right before his eyes. "Can we go to that beach? The one you took me to?"

The brunette blinked. "Sure." She answered quickly. She knew something must've been really bothering his mind. He never requested to visit Destiny Islands before, he was fine with wherever they are. She took out the Star Shard and held her hand out for Roxas to take. "Hang on tight." She said as he took her hand.

The Star Shard glowed before it took off to the sunset sky, taking the two teens with it.

When Roxas opened his eyes again, he was already in a different world.

His eyes stared at the horizon, looking at the sun as it touched the waters. He could feel the cool ocean breeze against his skin. The sound of waves gently crashing against the shores reached his ears. It was calming in a sense. He could stand there all day.

Hikari stayed quiet beside him. She stared at the sunset—all the while sneaking glances at the blond, waiting for the right time to talk to him. Being on Destiny Islands was a bit hard for her. She was so close to her friends and family, but she knew that she can't return without her brother and Riku. She made a promise to Kairi that she would come back with Sora and Riku, and she can't wait for their reunion.

"Hey, Rox." Hikari glanced over to look at the Paopu Tree on the miniature island. She remembers hanging out over at the crooked tree every time to watch the sunset. "Follow me." She waved her hand for him to follow her.

Roxas raised an eyebrow but followed her nonetheless. He walked behind her as she guided him under the bridge and into a wooden shack. They climbed the stairs before finding a door at the second floor. The brunette opened the door and for a brief moment, he was blinded by how bright it was. He covered his eyes with his hand before slowly adjusting to the light.

"Whoa…" Roxas stared wide-eyed at the scenery. They were on higher ground and he could see sky more clearly than on the shores. He followed Hikari across the bridge to the miniature island. There was a crooked tree with star-shaped fruits growing.

Hikari walked around the tree and pulled herself up to sit on it. "Over here." She glanced over her shoulder, smiling at the dumbfounded blond. She watched him walk around the tree before standing beside her. She patted the empty spot beside her a few times. "C'mon! There's plenty of room for you to sit. My butt's not that big to hog all the spot, ya'know." she snorted.

Roxas held in his laugh with a snort. He pulled himself up to sit on the tree and stared at the horizon, watching the sunset.

"Kinda reminds you of Twilight Town, huh?" Hikari suddenly said as she leaned back a little. "But nothing ever beats Destiny Islands' sunset." She said proudly.

The Nobody chuckled. "You seemed to know a lot about this world."

"Well, yeah, it's my home after all." Hikari answered.

"Your… home?" Roxas asked confusedly. "You said you were raised near the beach and I always thought you were raised in Hollow Bastion."

Hikari laughed. "Hollow Bastion doesn't have a beach—at least that's what I know. I never been to the beach there before…" she hummed as she crossed her arms—trying to recall if there really was a beach in Radiant Garden or Hollow Bastion. She shook the thoughts away before turning her attention back to Roxas. "Anyway, yeah. Destiny Islands is my home."

"Then… why did you choose Hollow Bastion?" Roxas asked curiously. "Don't you miss going back home?"

The brunette looked down. "I do… Well to make it simple, I can't go back home just yet. There's just a lot of things that I have to do." She glanced up to look at the darkening sky. A few stars began to show in the low lighting. She turned to look at Roxas. "What about you, Rox? Where's your home?" she asked.

Hikari knew that Roxas doesn't remember much about his past, but he has thought of a place to call home by now.

"To tell you the truth, I don't know." Roxas said honestly. He wanted to say the World That Never Was is his home, but it just doesn't seem the same anymore with Axel and Xion growing distant than ever. He suspected that he came from the same world Hikari did, but he just can't confirm it. "Twilight Town maybe…"

"Home is where the heart is." Hikari said with a grin. She raised her finger, silencing Roxas from ever saying that he's a Nobody with no heart. She pointed her finger at Roxas' heart and placed her hand on hers. "No matter where you are, as long as you're happy and that place is where you want to go—that place is home." She advised.

Roxas stared at the girl before a smile was seen on his lips. "Thanks." He turned his head back to look at the sunset. A few seconds later, his gaze dropped to look at his own gloved hands. "I would say that my home is where Axel and Xion are, but lately… things have been odd between us." He sighed.

"Odd how?"

"We don't talk anymore." Roxas said. It was more like he didn't want to talk to Axel and Xion didn't want to talk to both him and Axel. He remembered how one day they all show up at the Clocktower and just sat in silence. It was the most uncomfortable moment in his life. "I just think what that jerk did was wrong." He balled up his hands into fist, frowning at the memory,

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "Which jerk? Saix?"

"Him too." Roxas said. "And Axel."

"Axel?" Hikari was surely lost by this point.

"Axel forced Xion to go back to the Organization. He attacked her." Roxas felt all that anger rose back up. He chooses the Organization instead of their friendship. He can't look at him the same way again. "We're friends. Why would he hurt her and keep secrets away from me?"

' _So, they didn't really make up that day… Things got worse.'_ Hikari thought as she hummed, trying to come up with the best solution for Roxas. She didn't know what was going through either of their minds. She never figured out what was bothering Xion when she said she wasn't ready to go back. She wouldn't tell her and neither would Riku. Axel was a wild card for her. One moment he's all nice and the next he would be all jerk-like and uncaring. The only one she knew best is Roxas—because he was always open. "I can't say much… but I have to agree, Axel is wrong on a few points. Why don't you guys talk about it?"

"How can I? I can't even look at him…" Roxas sighed.

"How about you start talking with Xion first?" Hikari smiled a little. She reached something into her pocket and pulled out Xion's broken charm. It was only one pink Thalassa shell and the woven string. She held it out for Roxas to see.

"That's—!" Roxas recognized the charm—even though what was left of it were only the string and the pink shell.

"I found it. I was super worried when it was all broken into pieces. The only thing that I could save were these. Give this to her. It'll be a great way to start a conversation." Hikari left the part where an Organization member forced her to choose between the charm and Yuffie. She placed the seashell in Roxas' opened hand. "If you want, we can go look for more Thalassa shells. We still have time before we go back home." She suggested as she jumped off the tree.

Roxas stared at the pink shell. "No... Xion said that nothing could replace the charm we made for her. Making her another one would lose the meaning of the first one." He shook his head, remembering how Xion seemed so happy when he gave the charm to her. "I'll give this to her. It still count as a good luck charm, right?" He pocketed the shell and smiled.

The brunette whistled. "Wow, Rox, wow." She grinned and leaned against the tree, nudging Roxas' knee with her elbow. "I see that you caught up to my friendship speech skills. I give you a nine out of ten."

The blond poked Hikari's head. "It's the only good thing I caught from you."

"Hey!" Hikari turned to look at him sharply, shoving him a little as she glared at him playfully.

Roxas laughed before he jumped down from the tree.

"Let's go home."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari kept sneaking glances over to Cloud. After her chat with Roxas about keeping secrets and all that, she thought of telling Cloud about the truth. She was thinking of keeping her encounter with the silver-haired man a secret from Cloud, but that would mean she lied. Sure, she lied to the committee about the truth, but she was planning to tell them the truth after Sora wakes up. As for _the man who embodies all of Cloud's darkness_ , it was wrong of her to keep it away from the man himself.

"Hey, Cloud." Hikari began as she placed the books on the table. They were currently in the library, returning the books that were stacked inside Merlin's home. The rest of the committee were inside Ansem's study, trying to figure out the secrets behind his research. Yuffie was with them, but she was at the other side of the library.

"What is it?" Cloud kept placing the books back into the shelves. He did suspect that something was wrong with the brunette. She constantly called out his name but ended up saying that it was nothing. "This is the fifth time. Speak up if you really want to talk." He said, turning to look at the girl from above.

The brunette cleared her throat. "Well… you see…" she leaned against the table as she tries to say the correct words. She didn't want Cloud to take the wrong impression. "Do you remember that time when we were stuck together?"

"Yeah." Cloud answered as he jumped down from the top of the ladder.

Hikari sucked in a breath from her gritted teeth. "What would you do if I told you that I've met the guy you were looking for?" she said rather quickly in one breath.

There was a moment of silence between them.

"What?" Cloud took a step forward, his hands balled up into fist as his face suddenly turned serious. "Why didn't you tell me before?" he seemed to be holding his anger judging from his tone.

The brunette sighed. "With all that has been happening… I wanted to tell you, but I was just looking for the right time…" she admitted. With the recent attack of Organization XIII, she didn't know when it would be good to bright the topic up. "I really didn't mean to keep it away from you… Sorry!" she clamped her hands together and bowed her head in apology.

A loud sigh escaped Cloud's lips.

"What did he say to you?" Cloud asked.

Hikari blinked. She was expecting a whack to the head or a punch to her shoulder. "Well… nothing actually… other than looking for you." She scratched the back of her head. "We did fight a little, but I was knocked out before I could even win." She sighed.

Cloud turned to look away.

"Sephiroth…"

"Sephiroth?" Hikari parroted. "I don't know what's the deal with him with picking fights with me, but he's gonna get it!" she smashed her fist into her palm, a determined look across her face.

"No." Cloud denied, making Hikari look at him confusedly. "I'll be the one who will defeat him." he said as he raised his hand.

"And I'm sure you would!" Hikari grinned, crossing her hands behind her head.

"Yeah! With whatever you're dealing with!" Yuffie suddenly joined in the conversation, appearing from behind the bookshelf. Out of the two, Hikari was the most surprised to notice Yuffie's sudden appearance. The black-haired girl crossed her arms, giving an offended look. "What's this about anyway? Keeping secrets from me, huh?" she leaned forward with her hands on her hips.

Cloud snorted. "It's none of your business."

Yuffie turned to look at the blond. "Hey! It is soooo my business too!" she huffed out, pestering the man to tell her. "C'mon! Tell me which guy you want to whoop! I'll gladly join in the punching and kicking! Someone who's enough to make Cloud mad is someone I have to see!" she grinned from ear to ear.

Hikari laughed. She was glad that it turned out fine. She just hoped it turned out fine for Roxas and Xion and Axel too.

"I see you little ankle biters are having fun." A voice broke Yuffie from pestering Cloud more. From the entrance to the library, Cid walked in alone with a toothpick in his mouth.

"Cid!" Yuffie greeted as she jogged over to the man. "Did'ya find anything?" she asked.

Cloud and Hikari took a few steps closer to the oldest man in the room, waiting for his answer. Much to their surprise, he gave a nod.

"We did. Turns out there's more to Ansem's study then we know." Cid replied as he crossed his arms. "Those disks that have the ENCOM programs were for a defense system, but they're just prototypes. The real one is somewhere in his computer, but we can't seem to find his computer anywhere." He sighed, ruffling the back of his hair.

"The library doesn't have any computers too…" Yuffie hummed, placing a hand on her chin.

"Maybe he uses a laptop instead." Hikari suggested and both Cloud and Cid gave her a deadpan look.

"Did you find any secret panel in his study?" Cloud asked.

Cid sighed, shaking his head. "We can't seem to find any."

Yuffie snorted. "Maybe you weren't looking hard enough! Let us youngsters do it!" she puffed out her chest proudly, pointed at herself with her thumb. Before Cid could even smack her for being obnoxiously rude, she already made a dash for the door. "See all of you slowpokes there!" she shouted.

"That little brat…" Cid clicked his tongue, glaring at the door before he followed her footsteps in a steady walk. "You two coming?" he asked when he reached the door, glancing over his shoulder to look at the duo.

Hikari grinned. "Yeah! It's more fun than stacking books!" she quickly accepts, jogging to catch up with the man. "Cloud?" she turned to said man.

Cloud nodded his head and followed them out of the library.

Cid walked ahead of them, giving a chance for Hikari to talk to Cloud more.

"Listen Cloud…. about Sephiroth," Hikari began as she looked down. There was no sign of Cloud objecting her opinion so that was good. "I know you probably don't want to hear it from me, but don't let him get to you okay?" she smiled.

Hikari was afraid that Cloud would somehow revert back to his old self. She didn't want to see someone go back to the darkness. "I know you're that obsessed with beating him to the ground, but… don't forget about us. Just like how you guys were always there for me, we'll always be there for you. We can help you take him down!"

"Hearing this from a little kid…" Cloud sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can manage it. I don't need an advice from a little kid." he sped up in his stride, leaving the brunette behind.

"Hey! I'm fourteen! Technically a teen!" Hikari ran after him to catch up.

Cloud abruptly stopped right in front of the door to Ansem's study. "For the record, I'm _not_ obsessed."

Hikari rolled her eyes, blowing a raspberry. She entered the room after Cloud, finding each and every committee member inside the room looking for a secret panel. She walked over to the corner of the room, placing her hand on the wall. She kept running her hand through the walls to find something odd. The others were scattered around the small room, touching everything to find a button or a lever.

After the first fifteen minutes, both Yuffie and Hikari already gave up.

"This is getting us nowhere!" Yuffie cried out loudly as she sat down.

Cid snorted in laughter. "I thought you said to leave it to you youngsters?"

Hikari couldn't help but agree with Yuffie. "Maybe Ansem isn't the type to use computers? He did write his reports by hand." she sighed as she leaned against the wall. "Or maybe he's just an old-fashioned guy who used a typewriter."

"Then how do you explain the disks?" Leon retorted, as he pulled out a few books to see if it was lever.

Hikari thought for a moment. "Touché…" she shrugged. She leaned her hand against the wall and before she even knew it, the wall suddenly slides up. She didn't have time to catch herself and she fell face first to the floor, her check pressed against the cold metal flooring. "Okay… ouch…" she groaned, pushing herself up to a sitting position as she rubbed her nose.

"You found it!" Aerith gasped as she jogged over to the girl. She helped her up as her eyes gleamed at the discovery.

"Way the go, kiddo!" Cid laughed, slapping the girl's back as a grin appeared on his face.

Compared to Ansem's classic study room, it was way different. As they walked further into the secret hall, the temperature seemed to drop. Hikari didn't know why, but she felt uncomfortable inside the secret room. Her eyes widened when she noticed the flooring seemed to change from metal to glass.

"WHOA!" she took a few steps back as she stared at the glass floor with wide eyes. She quickly kneeled down, pressing her hands against the clear glass floor to look at what was at the bottom. Beyond the computer, there was an overlook that they could see. It seemed to be a large space with containers stuck to the wall.

"That's not the only thing you should be amazed about." Leon said as he stared at the computer before his eyes looked over to the giant deactivated portal behind them.

Hikari stood up and stared at the portal. "What is that?"

"Whatever it is, it has to be connected to the computer." Cid said as he cracked his knuckles. His eyes scanned over the advanced computer before finding the right switch to switch on the power.

 _System Online  
_

 _Welcome current user_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A few days later

Hikari had left the Old Mansion since there wasn't anyone she could talk to. Riku had gone off to do something that he doesn't want to tell her and Naminé was busy restoring Sora's memories. She knew that DiZ won't let Namine talk to get again for the next couple of hours and Riku definitely won't be back for a few hours. She decided to walk around Twilight Town to kill some time before coming back to the Old Mansion. She didn't wear the Organization coat. She didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

She hoped that she could bump into Hayner, Pence and Olette and play that Struggle game they love so much.

She was about to visit them at the secret hideout and stopped when she heard a battle nearby. The brunette wasn't one to pry into someone's business, but it was a battle. She couldn't just ignore a battle. Someone could get seriously hurt. She listened closely and followed the sound of metal clashing.

In each step she took, she was closer to the battle.

Her eyes widened when she spotted both Roxas and Xion fighting off Heartless. It didn't look too good on their side. From the moment Hikari observed the battle, she knew immediately that Roxas was growing tired.

Roxas fell to his knees, breathing heavily after he killed a Heartless.

"Roxas!" Xion exclaimed when she turned to look at him.

A Heartless lunged itself at Roxas, its sharp claws drawn out to attack.

A keyblade suddenly appeared out of nowhere, killing off the Heartless that was targeting Roxas. In a blink of an eye, Hikari appeared, holding the keyblade that she just threw. There was a faint glow around her and it disappeared a few seconds after she landed on the ground. She quickly turned around, staring worriedly at the boy.

"You okay?" Hikari asked as she casted cure above the Nobody.

"Hikari? What are you doing here?" Roxas questioned as Hikari helped him up.

Hikari gave him a smile. "I was just passing by." She replied and turned her attention to Xion—who finished the last Heartless in the area. "Xion." she grinned at her friend.

Xion smiled back. "You sure made it just in time."

"Heroes always arrive in a nick of time." Hikari gave a wink as she raised her thumb in a thumbs up. She summoned her keyblade away and glanced between Roxas and Xion. Judging from the atmosphere between them, looks like they made up. "Are you two okay?" she asked again.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah—!" he stumbled forward, holding his head in pain. Hikari quickly spread out her arm and caught him before he fell. She steadied him and held him in place until he can stand properly by himself. "Thanks…" he thanked as he finally found his footing.

The two girls headed towards the Clocktower, helping Roxas sit on the steps. Xion sat beside the blond as Hikari stood near them, staring at Roxas in worry.

"Are you sure you're okay, Roxas?" Xion asked worriedly.

"Xion's right. You don't look too good." Hikari agreed. She didn't know Nobodies could get sick. She knew they could get a serious headache and somehow a serious case of overslept, but she never knew they could get sick. "Maybe you should take a rest. You seem to be tired for the past few times you visited me. Did the Organization told you to work overtime?" She crossed her arms.

Roxas laughed. "No, no... it's okay... I just get pretty tired if I use the keyblade too long." He admitted and Hikari blinked. She never knew using the keyblade too long could tire someone out. "This is getting weird." He said as he leaned back.

Both Xion and Hikari exchanged looks. "Huh?"

Roxas turned to look at Xion. "Since when do you ever worry about me?" he said in a joking manner. Xion tilted her head in confusion. She turned to Hikari, silently asking if she could translate what Roxas was saying. The brunette shrugged and turned to the blond for an explanation. "Usually, I do all the worrying over you. I don't think it's ever been the other way around. It just feels strange, that's all." He chuckled, smiling at the girl sitting beside him.

Xion placed her hand on Roxas' shoulder. "Roxas, of course I worry about you. We all are."

"I'm just glad you're back. Things just weren't the same without you." Roxas said and Hikari nodded her head in agreement.

"Is Axel coming today?"

Roxas huffed, a frown on his lips. "Ah, who knows..." he drawled out lazily.

Hikari rubbed the back of her neck uncomfortably. _'Looks like they haven't made up yet...'_ she thought as she looked at Roxas. Somehow, she sees herself in Roxas. She didn't want to forgive Riku for a long period of time. Roxas actually handled it better than she did. It was a shame that Axel won't show up. She has a lot of questions to ask him.

"You guys didn't fight now, did you?" Xion asked, her eyebrows knitted in worry. It was strange to know both Roxas and Axel were fighting. For as long as she knows, they have been friends even before she joined the group.

"How could he? How could that jerk just attack you like that?" Roxas sighed heavily as he recalled the memory.

Xion glanced over to Hikari who just shrugged. She didn't know what to say since she was not supposed to know about the whole situation.

The brunette crouched down, trying to look at Roxas's face as he kept avoiding to look at her. "You guys are friends right? Why don't you give him another chance?" She advised. "I know what he did was wrong, but..." she trailed off, looking at Xion to help finish her sentence.

"I wouldn't be here with you guys if it weren't for him." Xion added as she nodded her head in agreement. "He's your best friend."

Roxas finally turned to face them, "I know, but so are you." He said, glancing over to Xion and then to Hikari. "Best friends don't fight each other."

Hikari smiled. She didn't want to make Roxas and Xion worried, but she wanted to make sure that if something was bothering them, she wasn't afraid to pull them out of the Organization. "I was wondering… if you guys want, we can all live together. You know… leave the Organization." She turned her head to look at the sunset.

"Huh?"

"I mean… The Organization doesn't treat you guys well and from what I see, things have been turning for the worse…" Hikari rubbed the back of her neck, turning to look back at the two Nobodies. "You can stay with us! With the committee—we're always looking for people to help. They're like a second family to me." She offered.

Roxas' eyes seemed to brighten at the idea. "That's actually a great idea!"

Xion looked down. "I… don't know. The Organization doesn't take lightly for traitors." As much as she was tempted to accept the offer, she couldn't. Not yet anyway.

The excitement and spirit Roxas had earlier quickly went down the drain. "Oh yeah..."

"Well, the offer will always be open!" Hikari grinned, patting Roxas' back comfortingly. "If you ever need anything, just come and drop by. Real estate agent Hikari is open twenty-four seven!" she gave a pose, the same grin plastered on her face.

The two Nobodies laughed.

"Thanks, Hikari. For everything."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So, get this Riku, we found something!" Hikari said excitedly. She was the only one standing while both Riku and Namine were seated in the white room.

It had been a few days and the brunette decided to visit both Naminé and Riku again to tell them the good news. With the new discovery, the committee was busy preparing for the Claymore project. She had been busy helping to test out the project. It was a success.

It had been a surprise visit, but they both welcomed her nonetheless—despite DiZ's complaint for Naminé to continue restoring Sora's memories.

Riku chuckled. "So? Don't leave us hanging like that. We're _dying_ to know more." He said sarcastically.

Namine giggled behind her hand.

The brunette stared at him for a moment. "I'll pretend I didn't hear your sarcasm." She cleared her throat and made dramatic hand gestures. "So, get this—we found a secret computer room in Ansem's study!" she exclaimed.

"Oh?" Riku straightened his posture. He knew that Hikari found Ansem's study because she told him everything about Hollow Bastion's restoration progress—including the temporary halt the restoration was having.

Hikari nodded excitedly. "Yeah! It has this super advanced computer and these weird containers with hearts and portals too! It's super freaky…" she crossed her arms over her chest as a hum escaped her lips. "Though, there were some folders that needed a few passwords to open… we still can't get through them just yet." She sighed.

"But finding that room and completing the Claymore is already a big step." Namine encouraged, a smile on her lips.

Riku placed his hand on his chin, nodding his head in agreement. "That's actually a huge step forward."

"I guess… Yeah!" Hikari cheered up quickly. "There's not much that I can say, but Cid's been working on it nonstop. I'll _update_ you guys if we get more info."

Riku groaned. "Enough with your puns, Hikari."

"Why? Naminé doesn't seem to mind."

The silver-haired teen couldn't seem to argue when Naminé didn't object. "Fine." He sighed, shaking his head.

Hikari grinned, crossing her hands behind her head before her smile was replaced with a small frown. The brunette suddenly remembered the time she found Roxas completely exhausted after using the keyblade. It happened twice. The first time was when Roxas and Xion were at Twilight Town, and the second time was when he was in Hollow Bastion doing a solo mission. He was lucky that he has been assigned in Hollow Bastion—otherwise Hikari wouldn't have known. It almost as if he was growing weaker and weaker by day.

"Hey, Riku, I've been meaning to ask you." She changed the topic, turning to look at her silver-haired friend. She hadn't seen Mickey for a while, so she couldn't ask him. She wanted to ask Yen Sid, but she was afraid that he would ask more questions. "Do… keyblade wielders get tired if they keep using their keyblade all day?"

Riku stayed quiet. "Why? Are you?"

The brunette cleared her throat. "Uh—not really?" she answered unsurely. She should've thought it through.

Naminé folded her hands on her lap as she looked down.

"Is this about Roxas?" Riku suddenly asked.

"Wait—how did you—" Hikari seemed to be taken aback.

"Naminé." A deep voice seemed to echo in the room, stopping the conversation within the three. They turned their head to the door and where a dark portal was seen. A man dressed in red stepped out, staring at them with an intense look.

The blonde stood up and walked towards the bandaged man, all the while avoiding to look at Hikari. She quickly stepped inside the portal, leaving a baffled brunette behind. She was about to chase after the Nobody, but DiZ stepped right in front of her—blocking her way to follow her. The portal closed behind him with Namine giving one last glance at Hikari.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Hikari demanded, her arms crossed as she frowned at the man. "Couldn't you give us a few more minutes?"

DiZ simply stares at the brunette. "There is something that we must discuss." He said seriously, glancing at Hikari and Riku. The silver-haired teen stood up from his seat and took a few steps close to stand beside his friend. "It appears that we have come to a complete standstill." He said, his hands behind his back.

"Standstill?" Hikari could already felt that this wasn't going to be an easy discussion. The atmosphere around them seemed to thickened and she could hear her heart pounding loudly. "What standstill is this about? We found Ansem's computer and we completed the Claymore, what's so _standstill_ about that?" she huffed out.

Riku could only stay quiet.

The bandaged man turned to face her. "Sora's memory restoration has come to a complete stop."

"What?" Hikari spluttered out, almost chocking from her own saliva. She stared at DiZ with wide eyes—a disbelief look across her face. She wanted to take it as a joke, but DiZ never told a joke. "What does this mean? Can we do something about it?" she asked, now completely worried.

"The only way for Sora to wake up is if we get rid of his Nobodies."

The brunette seemed to froze. "Nobodies? Sora doesn't have a Nobody—let alone _Nobodies_." She laughed uneasily.

She had a hunch and she didn't like it one bit.

DiZ's eye fell to meet Hikari's blue eyes. "You should've known better who they are." He turned to face Riku who seemed rather calm while Hikari seemed to be panicking. "It has gone on long enough. Eliminate his Nobodies—bring Sora's memories back."

"Right…"

Hikari stopped Riku, holding his elbow to get his attention. "…who are they?"

The silver-haired teen seemed to fall into another round of silence.

"Riku!" Hikari tightened her grip around his elbow, her voice turned to a desperate plea. When DiZ mentioned two Nobodies—her mind immediately thought of Roxas and Xion. She was hoping that Sora's Nobodies were another pair of Nobodies from the Organization or some other group, but it seemed impossible. "Please… don't tell me…" she couldn't finish her own sentence.

Riku's lips were set in a thin line.

Roxas and Xion was left unsaid from the silver-haired teen.

The brunette loosened her hold around Riku's elbow, her hand falling limply to her side.

There were a few times that she has seen Sora in both Roxas and Xion, but she had shrugged that off—thinking that she was just missing Sora so much.

"Hikari—"

"Both Roxas and that girl has to be eliminated for Sora to wake up." DiZ cuts through Riku's sentence. He remained passive about the whole situation. "Riku, Hikari—"

"NO!" Hikari snapped, turning her head to look at DiZ sharply. Her eyebrows knitted together in pure frustration. She glared at him as a scowl appeared on her lips. "I'm not fighting Roxas and Xion! They're my friends!" she shouted.

"You remained oblivious to the truth—" DiZ said calmly.

"You never told me anything!" Hikari shouted at him, her hands balled up into fists as she resisted the urge to hit the older man. She felt anger and disappointment. She didn't know how to describe how she was feeling at the moment. It was all a jumbled mess. "Did you know about this, Riku?!" she turned to face her friend.

Riku took a step forward, raising his hand. "Hikari, calm down—"

Hikari bit her bottom lip as she stared at him with a heartbroken look. "You knew about this and you didn't tell me?" her voice seemed to break in each word.

DiZ didn't seem to be fazed by the whole situation. "It is your own mistake for getting close to those Nobodies. You will have to face the consequences—finish them off or let them live." He said. "They are only Nobodies, they will have no feelings when you turn against them."

"Shut it! Roxas and Xion deserved to be their own person! Stop treating them as if they don't have feelings!" Hikari took a step forward and she was quickly stopped by Riku, who held her shoulders tightly—holding her back. "Let me go—!"

"If both of them are not taken care of, Sora will forever remain in slumber."

Hikari instantly stopped. She turned to face DiZ with a horrified look.

"Then tell me—who do you choose? His Nobodies or the real one—your own brother?"

The young keyblade wielder shook away Riku's hands on her shoulders and she quickly ran out of the room.

"Hikari!" Riku reached his hand out for the brunette.

The silver-haired teen glanced over to DiZ, glaring at him through his blindfold before going after his friend. He burst out of the door, catching the brunette just going through the main entrance. He wasted no time to catch her. He jumped down from the second floor and landed on the floor safely. He quickly caught up to her in the forest, pulling her from running away any further.

"Hikari— listen to me," Riku began, his hand still around Hikari's arm.

There was a sniffle. "I—I—don't—" she hiccupped, the muscle in her arms began to grow numb. Riku released his hold on her arm and she crouched down to the ground when her knees seemed to grow weak. "I—I—I—can't—Riku!" she sobbed loudly.

Riku's heart clenched when he heard Hikari's loud cries. He knew how much Roxas and Xion matters to her—and how her brother matters to her as well. He knew how hard it is for Hikari to take in all the news. She loved all of them and he knew she didn't want to lose either of them.

"I—want Sora to wake up—but I—I don't want to lose Roxas and Xion either!" Hikari broke into sobs, trying to stop crying as she talked to him.

Riku kneeled down beside her, his hand on her back. He hadn't seen Hikari this upset for a long time. He gently pulled her closer, placing her head to lean on his shoulder as his arms wrap around her comfortingly. Truly, it was part of his fault for not telling her the truth from the start. As he sees how close Hikari became to Roxas and Xion, the more hesitant he was to tell her the truth. It was the same case with Namine. She was afraid to tell the truth.

The brunette's shoulders trembled as her hands kept on wiping the tears from her face. The tears kept on coming—no matter how much she tries to stop herself from crying.

He waited for her stop calm down before he starts talking. He slowly pulled away, his hands still on her shoulders.

"You okay?" Riku asked softly.

Hikari shook her head, "What—do you _think_?" she retorted with a sniffle.

Riku gave a small smile as he cupped Hikari's face, lifting her head up to make her look at him. Her eyes were puffy and red, and she looked tired from crying.

"What… am I suppose to do? I just don't want to lose anyone anymore." Hikari's gaze averted down. "I love them all—I don't want to choose." She choked back a sob.

"Sora is your brother—Roxas and Xion are a part of him." Riku wiped Hikari's tears away with his thumb. "They have to go back, Hikari." he said gently.

"But…isn't there another way?"

Riku sighed softly. "If there is, then I would gladly take that option."

Hikari pushed Riku's hands down as she lowered her head.

"I just wished you wouldn't find out this way…" Riku placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder.

The young keyblade wielder sighed, pulling out the charm Mickey gave her.

She was torn.

' _What should I do…Ven?'_

* * *

A/N:

End of chapter 24! The next one will probably be the last chapter.

Tell me what you guys think of the chapter~


	25. Chapter 25

A/n: prepare for a long chapter! I thought about splitting the chapter into two, but it won't make sense if I did that… so be prepared! :)

Guest: that's a nice idea haha

Guest 2: yup! Just one more before KH2!

Gamergirl1217: aww thank you! Lol I do plan to continue that little HIkari-nort comic.

The Van Stealing Nobody: thank you!

Alyssa2019: thank you!

Draconicflare: no worries! Good luck in college! Lmao, I didn't even bet him in KH2. DiZ is a jerk until the end of KH2 lol. And thank you! I plan on more Hikari-nort comics haha. Wohooo! Only a few days left until E3 and the concerts!

Gry21: it's a nice idea!

Dylvision: ohh! That's nice!

Guest 3: yup! But this one's gonna be loooong

Guest 4: true, he's going to regret big time.

Guest 5: she couldn't choose between them.

Lulu9814: welp! We'll find out in this super long chapter lol

Stormfall: here comes the end…. :0

Guess 6: not really.

Guest 7: she'll be okay…. Eventually.

Mysterygirl145: it all begin and ends in this chapter.

theIrishWriter: well, she is just visiting the small islands and no one ever visited the small islands anymore after she, Riku and the other boy disappeared. I haven't actually decide if Hikari's going to be in the fake Twilight Town.

MemoryStormSanctuary: well, it's not Vanitas' heart that she has.

Now on to the story~

EDIT (June 9): I added some extra lines.

* * *

Chapter 25  
Guardian's Oath

Namine knew Hikari won't take the news to the revelation very well. The moment DiZ entered the room, she knew that it was time. She didn't know how she could tell the truth. Both Riku and Namine knew they should've told Hikari from the start, but they couldn't do it. They didn't want to break her heart, but now she was hurt than never before. Knowing the truth of her two friends who were actually her brother's Nobodies was too much for her to handle.

"Hikari…" Namine began softly, staring at the girl sitting across from her.

Three days passed since DiZ told Hikari the truth and she hadn't spoken to anyone ever since. She didn't want to go back to Hollow Bastion and insisted on staying inside the White Room.

Said girl raised her chin up from her arms to look at the blonde with tired eyes. She hadn't exactly slept well and eaten properly. It took Namine's persuasion to make the brunette at least eat something. It hurt Namine to see her friend like this. She was so energetic and lively, but now she was quiet and gloomy.

Namine smiled a little. "It's a really nice weather out there. How about we go for a stroll in the forest?" She suggested, hoping that Hikari would at least accept her offer.

Hikari stared at the blonde with frown. "I thought you weren't allowed to go out?" She asked. She was feeling a bit bitter about the whole truth. She was disappointed that both Namine and Riku knew about the truth, but they didn't tell her. She would've taken it better if they had told her sooner.

The Nobody flinched a little at Hikari's cold attitude.

A heavy sigh escaped the brunette's lips. "Sorry…" she apologized as she leaned back against the chair. She tilted her head back and pressed her forearm against her closed eyes. The lack of sleep was getting to her. Her body's tired and yet her mind won't let her fall asleep. Even with Namine's powers, she could only get an hour to two hours of sleep. "...I'm just upset." She said truthfully.

"I'm sorry, Hikari…" Namine lowered her head as she folded her hands on her lap. "We didn't mean to hide it from you. We were waiting for the right time, but…" she trailed off, remembering the day Hikari knew of the truth.

"It was too late." Hikari finished with a long and heavy sigh.

Namine sighed but nodded her head. "Yes."

Hikari rubbed her eyes. "At first… when I saw Xion as Kairi, I never really think much of it—but now that I know…" she has seen Xion as both Sora and Kairi—and even Ventus for a short time. If DiZ only told her to rid of Sora's Nobody rather than Nobodies, she would've thought that Xion is Kairi's Nobody. "Everything just doesn't make sense..."

"Xion's not Sora, nor she is Roxas. She's Kairi as Sora remembers her." Namine glanced down to look at her sketchbook. There were three people in the sketch, Axel, Roxas and Xion. "Sadly, no one will remember her once she disappears." She said with a frown.

"What? Not even Roxas and me?" Hikari was surprised. "Why not?" She was scared now. The least she wanted to do if Roxas and Xion went back to Sora is to remember them both.

Namine looked over to the wall, where her sketch of Castle Oblivion is taped. "Vexen created her in Castle Oblivion. She's an imperfect Replica of Roxas created from his leaked memories." She explained and Hikari could only listen. "If she returns her memories to Sora, then she will disappear. In exchange for not having her own memories, she's connected through other's memories." She finished, picking up the sketchbook on the table.

For Hikari, it didn't make any sense that Xion was a Replica created from memories. She could talk and eat and laugh just like anybody else. She never even noticed that Xion is a puppet. She was oblivious to the truth around her. At one point, she was upset for Xion not telling her something this important, but at the same time, she understood why Xion hide it from her and Roxas.

Hikari took out her scrapbook diary. "Not even the pictures we have? Not even one?" She turned the pages to look at the pictures of the three of them goofing around—mostly her than Roxas and Xion. There were many inside her diary, starting from the moment she met Xion till the moment she was traveling with Riku and Xion. She didn't want to lose all the memories she had with Xion. "Can't you use your powers to save just _one_ picture?" She held the picture of herself, Roxas and Xion in when they were in Disney Town.

The blonde shook her head. "For all the powers I possess, I can't keep even one piece of her memory connected."

Hikari stared down at the picture sadly.

Her blue eyes glanced over to Namine and she took a moment to stare at the Nobody sitting across from her. "Is your Somebody someone I know?" She asked, changing the topic slightly.

Namine gave a silent nod.

"You're Kairi's Nobody, huh, Namine?"

The Nobody gave a nod again. "Yes…"

Hikari finally snapped.

"It's just not fair!" She slammed her hands on the table and the chair behind her screeched loudly as she stood up—making the Nobody sitting across her flinch at her sudden outburst. Her diary slipped from her lap, falling to the floor. " _Why_? Why does this keep happening to someone I care about?!" She curled her hands into fists.

The brunette gritted her teeth as she tried to hold down all of her anger and emotions.

"Ven, Terra, Aqua…" The brunette whispered under her breath, staring angrily at her own hands. She curled her hands so hard that she was positive it was turning white beneath her black gloves. She had lost all three of them years ago and she still can't find them. "Roxas… Xion...and now you." She looked up to see Namine, a crestfallen look across her face.

She looked down to her diary. It was opened to one of the pages with a picture of her and Namine with Hayner, Pence and Olette. She remembered the day clearly. Hayner, Pence and Olette's memories of Namine have to be erased. Knowing that memories could easily be erased and forgotten, her eyes seemed to water. She kneeled down to the floor, picking up her diary and hugging it close to her heart.

"I… don't want to lose any of you…" Hikari trailed off, sniffling as she wiped the tears away with her sleeves.

Namine pursed her lips, clutching her dress. It hurt her to see Hikari like this. It really does. She wanted to comfort her, but she was afraid that Hikari would react differently.

There was a moment of silence between the two girls.

"There—has to be another way." Hikari suddenly said as she shakily stood up, using the table as support. She looked down at her diary, and slipped a picture of Roxas, Xion and herself between the pages before shutting the diary with a loud snap. She placed her hands on the table. "There _has_ to be. No matter what DiZ says." She stood straight, taking a deep breath.

"Hikari—

"I became a keyblade wielder because I want to protect those who matters to me." The brunette raised her hand, staring at it. There has to be some powers that a keyblade wielder has—other than freeing hearts and locking worlds or opening locked doors. She just has to find it and train harder. "I'll find a way, I promise." She gave Namine a smile, despite the tired look in her eyes.

The brunette glanced over to Namine's drawing of Castle Oblivion.

' _There's always a way.'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

When Roxas walked inside the Gray Area, he felt that something was wrong. He glanced around the room—finding Saix and Axel arguing with Xigbar trying to pull them apart.

"What's… going on here?" the blond asked confusedly, glancing over to his red-haired friend.

The three of them quickly silenced up.

Saix sighed, clicking his tongue as he passed by the keyblade wielder. "Now all we're left with is the one of the least significance…" he stared down at the shorter boy with distaste.

The blond stared at the direction where Saix left. "What was that supposed to mean?" he asked aloud, confused as to why Saix suddenly said that to him. He turned back to look at Xigbar and Axel for answers. "What happened?"

Xigbar sighed, his hands on his hips. "Xion flew the coop again!"

"Huh?"

The pony-tailed man huffed. "She smashed me up while Flamisilocks here just stood and watched!" he jabbed his thumb to the direction of the spiky redhead. He crossed his arms, deciding that it was time for him to leave. "I'm out of here."

The keyblade wielder turned to his friend. "What exactly did Xigbar mean just now?" he knew when Xigbar told him that Xion escaped the Organization again. He just didn't understand why Axel let Xion go this time. "Say something, Axel!" he demanded.

The redhead stayed quiet.

"Didn't we make a promise? We said we're gonna go to the beach together! The three of us!"

Roxas gritted his teeth when he received no answer. "Why…" he took a few steps closer and grabbed Axel by his arms, shaking him back and forth. "Why didn't you stop her?!"

Axel sighed. "Xion… is a puppet, created to duplicate your powers."

Roxas gave Axel a disbelief look. "Are you nuts? Xion's a person! Not a puppet!"

"She's a mirror that reflects you. It was only a matter of time before someone breaks the mirror." Axel looked down, crossing his arms over his chest.

The blond's eyes widened. "You mean—they have to destroy her?!" He shouted in surprise. He didn't know what was truly going on between Xion and the Organization. No one told him about anything. He never questioned why Xion left in the first place, but now he has the right to know everything about his best friend. "Answer me!" He demanded angrily when Axel kept quiet.

Axel ignored him and walked towards the entrance of the Grey Area. "Let's go."

Roxas gritted his teeth. "You haven't answered—!"

The redhead glanced over his shoulder, a grim expression across his face. "There's a meeting about it soon. You'll find your answers there." He said before leaving Roxas alone inside the Grey Area.

The keyblade wielder exhaled a heavy sigh, staring at the hallways. He never understood why Axel never gets straight to the point. He has been asking about Xion for quite a while and yet, Axel kept on avoiding his questions like a plague. He knew Axel was hiding something from him, but he never knew what. All the while he walked towards the Where Nothing Gathers, he couldn't help but feel uneasy.

The blond sat on his throne, glancing around the round room to see the rest of the remaining Organization sitting in their respective chair. His blue eyes glanced over to Axel who kept his eyes on the floor the whole time. He averted his gaze when the Organization leader appeared in his throne through the dark corridors.

"Xion has deserted us once again." Xemnas' deep voice echoed inside the room, surprising the members with the news.

"Whaaa? Again?" Demyx whined as he slumped in his throne.

Luxord turned to face the leader. "Do we know where she had gone this time?" He asked calmly.

"At the moment, no." Saix replied, his arms crossed. He looked down to the youngest member in the group. "Starting tomorrow, all members are to look for it and bring it back." He commanded, voicing Xemnas' orders.

Xaldin snorted in reply. "Why bother? Just erase her and be done with it. We don't need traitors among us."

Roxas turned his head sharply at the man, glaring at him.

"That's what we do on a normal case, but she is a broken puppet created from our research project." Saix said with a straight expression.

The keyblade wielder's grip on his armrest tightened.

Murmurs were heard among the members.

Xigbar sniggered behind his hand. "Why don't you enlighten us on your little… _pet project_?" He glanced over to the leader sitting on the tallest throne.

"The purpose was to take a piece of the Keyblade wielder's memory and copy it, thus making his powers our own. This was one of several projects of ours being undertaken at Castle Oblivion." Xemnas began his explanation. Everyone listened, some were quiet and some were surprised. Out of all the members, Roxas was the most shocked, but he kept on listening. "Vexen oversaw the project at castle oblivion and dubbed the project as No. i, or became known as Xion." He finished.

"What? So, Xion's a doll all this time?" Demyx whistle, amazing by the fact.

"Incredible… to think that Vexen was capable of such things." Xaldin remained passive.

Roxas glanced over to Axel, his blue eyes almost as wide as plates from the revelation.

Xemnas also turned to look at the redhead. "Axel. The onus is on you to capture and bring back Xion. The escape was on your watch. I will overlook any nicks or scratches. Just ensure she still  
functions on arrival." He ordered.

"You're dismissed."

Almost everyone left the room, leaving only Axel and Roxas behind.

"You… knew all this time…" Roxas gripped on his coat tightly, his shoulders slightly shaking from the anger he has been holding. "And you hid it from me… Since when you knew?"

If Axel hid it from him this long, then what else was he hiding from him?

Axel leaned back on his throne. "I couldn't remember…"

Roxas raised his chin. "Didn't get it memorized, huh?" He gave him a bitter smile. He sighed heavily as he looked down to the floor—an image of Xion standing there when she first got introduced to the Organization flashed before his eyes. "Was I… the only one who thought of us as best friends?" He asked himself, glancing down to look at his own hands.

"Roxas, we are best friend, but Xion—"

"NO!"

He had enough of this.

Roxas covered his ears and left the room through the dark corridors. He didn't want to listen to anyone anymore. He had been told lies many times to cover the truth and now he couldn't accept it. He ran through the halls, panting heavily as his mind rushed with memories of Xion. He reached the end of the hall to the Twilight's view.

He walked closer to the edge, staring at the bottomless pit. He raised his hand and summoned his keyblade.

"It all started with this—!" Roxas stared at the keyblade with distaste. At first, he knew that he and Xion were special because of it, but now… it has caused him more trouble than it has bring something special. It had broken their friendship. "This stupid key!" He threw the keyblade over the railing, letting it fall into the bottomless pit.

The Nobody took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

"Wha—?"

His blue eyes widened when he saw the keyblade reappeared in his hand with a bright light. He raised his keyblade a little, staring at it in disbelief.

"Are you… telling me we can't rid of you not matter how much we run?" His grip on the handle tightened before he summoned the keyblade away.

"I've had enough of this!" He shouted loudly, screaming to the sky.

"Why'd it have to be me?!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari dropped her head on the book that she was reading.

' _This… is hopeless…'_ the brunette sighed out. Days passed and she still haven't found anything that would help Sora wake up and a way for her friends to become their own person. She had gone back to Hollow Bastion—the same day she declared to Namine that she will find another way to save them.

Riku was the one who dropped her off. The silver-haired teen was worried about Hikari's well-being since she was pretty much down in a dump in the first day after knowing the truth. It was decided that Riku would be the one who will bring back Roxas and Xion to Sora—since it was proven that Hikari wasn't able to do it. He had left Hikari in the hands of the committee—thinking that they were a better company for her than himself. Even though, he can't keep a close eye on her—he asked Merlin to do it for him.

"Geez, Hikari! You looked like you're on the verge of dying or something!" Yuffie stood beside the girl, her hands on her hips as she examined Hikari's tired face.

"I am _dying_ … of boredom that is." The brunette pushed herself up, sitting upright as she stretched her arms above her head. She slouched a second after, propping her head up with her hands. Immediately, after returning to Hollow Bastion, she went straight to the castle's library and Ansem's study. She picked a few books that were centered about hearts and decided to start from there. "This book is filled with big words that I don't even understand! What does _elucidate_ even mean?" she groaned.

" _Elu-ci-date_. It means to explain." Aerith giggled as she placed a glass of cold barley tea in front of the brunette. The young woman glanced over to the notebook beside the book Hikari was ready. From a brief look, she could read that it was about the workings of a heart.

Hikari placed the glass of barley tea down. She glanced over to her scrapbook diary—to which she used as a notebook as well. She had written down a few important things that she found out in Ansem's reports and research books—but they weren't a lot to help her solve how to make a heart for her friends and still wake Sora up without having his Nobodies going back to him.

Yuffie peered over Hikari's shoulder to look at her notes. "Never thought you would be interested in this kind of stuff." She said as she found a few equations written on the pages. She suddenly snorted in laughter when she saw something that interest her. "Wow, you really need to work on your handwriting!" she pointed her finger to a part of the book—that pretty much looked like a chicken's handwriting.

"That's not mine!" Hikari denied. Sure, her handwriting wasn't the prettiest or the neatest, but it was readable. "It's Dr. Finkelstein's from Halloween Town!" she pouted.

The other day, the keyblade wielder had visited Halloween Town for a brief moment to ask Dr. Finkelstein about the workings of a heart and what was needed to make one. She thought that it would be a great idea to ask someone who had the experience—rather than aimlessly trying to figure out on herself. The scientist went on a full two-hour long explanation about it—all the while writing the notes down in Hikari's book—since he thought that Hikari was too slow in taking the notes, he decided to do it himself.

Aerith smiled a little. "What are you working on? Maybe we can help you figure it out." She offered, taking a seat beside the girl.

Hikari picked the book up, turning the page. "It's… just a little something I'm working on." There were many things that she found out about the heart, but there was nothing about memories in Ansem's reports. Dr. Finkelstein mentioned that memories were important to make a heart, but where could she possibly get memories in such a short time? She could ask Namine to do it, but the question is how. She knew that Namine, Riku and especially DiZ were going against her plans to make a heart. Something so complicated couldn't be done in just a few days. "But I'm reaching a dead end, so I guess I better find another way…" she sighed heavily, closing the book.

Aerith placed her hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Don't give up. I'm sure you can do it." She smiled.

The keyblade wielder grinned. "I know I can!" she pumped her fist, giving a wink and a confident smile.

"Maybe you can look for something in Ansem's super computer?" Yuffie suggested, crossing her arms over her chest.

Hikari blinked. "That's… actually a great idea!" she stood up from her seat and picked up her book, placing it inside her pouch before heading towards the door. She stood by the door and turned to look over at the two committee members inside Merlin's house. "You two coming?" she asked.

"Heck yeah!" Yuffie quickly ran over to Hikari's side as Aerith followed the two girls in a slower pace.

The three girls decided to walk over to the castle instead of running. Hikari did insisted on sprinting over towards the castle, but Aerith chided her about how it wasn't healthy to sprint all the way from Merlin's house to the castle. The young keyblade wielder was excited to explore the data in Ansem's computer. She knew that he's a smart man who has done more research about hearts than anyone she knows. There were a few things that they couldn't access because of an advanced firewall. She just hoped Ansem's researches weren't one of them.

"I hope Cid doesn't hog the computer all day." Hikari laughed a little at the thought of the man. For the past few days, Cid was always found inside the computer room. She knew that was important for him to look inside Ansem's computer for the restoration, but she hoped that he would be willing to share a few minutes for her to use.

"If you ask nicely, I'm sure he'll let you borrow it for five minutes." Aerith giggled behind her loosely curled hand.

Yuffie snorted. "Hah! Let me do all the talking! With me, I'm sure he'll let you use it all day until you find what you're looking for!" she puffed her chest out proudly, confident to make Cid let Hikari borrow the computer.

The brunette gave her friend a deadpan look. "Yeah, right… more like he won't let me use it." she said jokingly. She almost lost her balance when Yuffie shoved her away, laughing. "Hey!" she complained as she shoved Yuffie away with the same strength.

Aerith laughed when the shenanigans between Yuffie an Hikari continues. She stopped in her tracks when she felt a strong tug at the hem of her dress. Her emerald eyes glanced down and her eyes widened when she found a blue creature, tugging at her dress. "Oh!" she gasped, taking a step back from surprise.

Both Yuffie and Hikari turned around when they heard Aerith's gasp.

"What's wrong—whoa!" Hikari's eyes almost bulged out when her eyes landed on the blue creature who kept on tugging on Aerith's dress. "What is that?!" she stared at the creature with her mouth hung open.

"Never seen it before—" Yuffie shrugged her shoulders.

Hikari turned to Yuffie. "It looks like a koala! You guys didn't tell me that Hollow Bastion has blue koalas—Hey! Stop pulling on Aerith's dress! That's rude, ya'know?!" she ran towards Aerith when the blue creature kept bugging her. She raised her fist threateningly, hoping to scare it away. When she reached their side, she quickly wrapped her arms around it as she tried to pull it away from Aerith. "Let go will 'ya?! You're going to stretch her dress!" she grunted.

"Choota!"

"Argh!" The brunette fell flat on her back when she managed to get the blue creature off of Aerith. She held the ball of blue fluff and let out a grunt when it fell on her stomach. It rolled off of her and she rolled to her side, clutching her stomach. "Ughhhh—you're heavy!" she huffed out as she sat on the ground.

"What is that anyway?" Yuffie stared down at the blue creature that curled itself to a ball before spinning around the three girls. "It doesn't look dangerous."

"Tell that to my stomach!" Hikari glared at her friend. She sat down on the ground and stared at the blue creature that stopped right in front of her. It sat on the ground, giving her one of the biggest smile she has ever seen.

"Aloha!" the blue creature greeted.

The three girls glanced at each other.

"Aloha?" Yuffie echoed. "This little dude is not from around here, huh?" she concluded.

"Well duh! He's a blue koala!" Hikari directed her hands at the blue creature, pointing the obvious to the black-haired girl.

The blue creature shook its head furiously. "Naga! Meega Stitch! Not koala!" he pointed his claw at himself, before crossing his arms and huffing at Hikari. "Meega cute and fluffy!"

Aerith crouched down in front of the blue creature. "Your name is Stitch, right?" she smiled kindly and the blue creature—Stitch—nodded his head in confirmation. "I'm Aerith, it's a pleasure to meet you." She placed her hand on her chest, referring to herself.

"And I'm Yuffie!" Yuffie jabbed her thumb to herself, a grin across her face.

Hikari sighed before reaching her hand out for a handshake. "Meega Hikari! nice to meet cha, Stitch!" she greeted, introducing herself in the same language Stitch was using—though that was the only word she knew.

"Ih! Ih!" Stitch clapped his hands, laughing as he shook Hikari's hand up and down.

"So, what seems to be the problem, lil' guy?" Yuffie asked.

Stitch pulled on Hikari's finger, making her fall flat on her front from the extra strength. "Hagata! Hagata!" he pointed his other finger at the direction of where the three girls are actually going. "Maka! Maka!" he kept on saying, urging for them to hurry up.

"Okay! Okay! Stop dragging me!" Hikari pulled her finger back and stood back up, letting the blue creature run along first to the location he wants them to go. She patted the dirt off her clothes and followed the creature in a slower pace. "The baby koala is stronger than he looks…"

"You can go first to the computer room, Hikari. We'll take care of this." Aerith gave her a smile as she placed her hand on the young girl's shoulder.

The brunette shook her head. "It can wait—he needs our help first." She returned the smile and jogged over towards the blue creature. It was true that she wanted so badly to find out the secrets behind Ansem's computer, but it would be selfish of her to just leave Stitch when he needs her help. When she came around the corner, she could see the blue creature halfway towards a small aircraft. "Whoa!"

"Maka! Maka!" Stitch glanced over to her before crawling towards the aircraft.

"It looks like a spaceship." Yuffie squinted her eyes. "He's an alien!" she gasped loudly in realization.

Aerith examined the damage. "Do you want us to fix your ship?"

The blue creature nodded his head furiously, a grin on his face. "Ih! Ih!"

The young woman sighed softly. "I'm sorry, but neither of us can fix a broken ship. We need to ask our friend to help." She apologized. There was only one person in the committee that could fix Gummi ships and ships alike, and that person is Cid.

Stitch's ears dropped in disappointment as he looked down.

Hikari looked down at the small creature. "Is there some place you want to go?" she kneeled down in front of the blue creature. It would take some time to find Stitch's home because she never knew where his world is, but it was right to offer rather than staying quiet. "I can take you back home if you want." She offered, taking out her Star Shard.

"Awwww!" Yuffie gushed as she leaned against Hikari's head, pushing her down a little.

The brunette gave an annoyed look as she pushed Yuffie off of her.

"Home? Stitch don't have… home. Kanja ooga." Stitch looked down as he twiddled his fingers together.

Aerith, Yuffie and Hikari exchanged glances.

"Stitch, would you like to stay with us then?" Aerith smiled.

Stitch perked his head up, his ears shooting upwards at the invitation. "Home?" he asked as he tilted his head. When Aerith gave a nod, the blue creature immediately nodded his head in return, clapping his hands happily. "Ih! Ih! Ih, takka!" he said, jumping up and down.

Yuffie grinned. "This settles it! Welcome to the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee, Stitch!" she stood straight, her hands on her hips. She turned around on her heels—heading back to the direction where they were heading first. "Let's go tell the others!"

Aerith nodded her head and followed the hyper ninja.

Hikari was about to follow them when Stitch stopped her.

"Ikata!" Stitch exclaimed as he pointed his finger at the item in Hikari's hand. He jumped into Hikari's arms—who caught him in time. He kept on pointing his finger at the Star Shard, a big grin on his face. "Friendship circle! Friend! Ven!"

The brunette glanced over to the Star Shard. "Friendship circle—!" her eyes widened in realization when she connected what Stitch was trying to say. "Wayfinder? You know Ven?" she asked.

Stitch nodded his head. "Ih, Ih! Ven friend! Achi-baba! Where Ven?"

Hikari frowned, lowering the Star Shard. "Sorry… I don't know… I'm trying to find him myself." She admitted.

"Oooohhh." Stitch tilted his head, his ears dropping a little.

The young keyblade wielder glanced up to the sky, a determined smile across her lips.

' _I'm finally a step closer to finding you… Ven.'_

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Are you _serious_?"

"Yeah!"

Leon stared at the blue ball of fur as it rolled around the room like a ball. Just a few minutes ago, Aerith, Yuffie and Hikari came into the study with a blue creature—proclaiming that the creature is the newest addition to the restoration committee. The blue creature stopped right beside Hikari and it held his feet, laughing.

"Ohana!" Stitch exclaimed.

"It's a blue koala…" Leon remarked.

Hikari directed her hand at Leon. "SEE? He seems to think so too!"

Stitch laughed again and jumped to the wall, crawling up to the ceiling. "Stitch cute and fluffy!" he exclaimed before falling down—dropping himself into Hikari's arms, who caught him with a grunt. "Everyone achi-baba!" he threw his hands up.

"A _talking_ blue koala." Cloud added as he stared at the blue creature.

"Aw c'mon! Why are you guys being so negative? Just look at him! He's too cute!" Yuffie grabbed Stitch from Hikari's arms and spun around once before hugging him close. "And so fluffffy!" she giggled.

"Ih! Ih!" Stitch agreed.

Aerith smiled. "Stitch can actually help us guard Hollow Bastion. He can fight." As if on cue, Stitch nodded his head and an extra pair of arms grew from his body, surprising the three males inside the room.

Cid stared from where he sat. "A _mutated_ talking blue koala." He continued, holding the stick in his mouth between his fingers. "Welcome to the family, Stitch!" he grinned.

Leon sighed, but a smile appeared on his lips. "Welcome, Stitch—to the committee."

Hikari grinned, happy for Stitch to find a family in the committee. She hoped that it would be this easy for Roxas and Xion if they decided to join the committee. She knew DiZ won't let that happen, but if she can stall long enough for her to find a way to save both Roxas and Xion and her own brother—she would be glad to keep them away from Twilight Town and the Organization.

"There you are my dear!"

The brunette turned around to see Merlin walking inside the room. "Oh? I see we have a visitor!" he laughed when he spotted Stitch standing on the table. The blue alien waved his hand at Merlin—who returned the gesture before turning back to look at the keyblade wielder. "Now, where was I? Oh, yes, yes!" he chuckled to himself when he finally remembers.

"Yeah?" Hikari tilted her head, waiting for him to continue.

The wizard dressed in blue guided the brunette out of the room. "Come, come! There's something I need you to do." He said as he ushered HIkari out, leaving the rest of the committee inside the room. He guided her to the empty halls and once he was sure no one was listening, he took out his wand. "Riku is looking for you, my dear. The lad says he's waiting for you at Destiny Islands." He said as Hikari's clothes changed to the Organization cloak in a wave of his wand.

Hikari blinked. "Riku? Did he say what about?" she asked as she pulled out the Star Shard.

Merlin shook his head. "Sadly, I don't know, my dear, but best if you hurry!"

The keyblade wielder nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Merlin!" she waved her hand goodbye as she ran towards the exit. She truly didn't know what Riku wanted. She just hoped it wasn't time to bring Roxas and Xion to DiZ. She was a hundred percent sure that both Roxas and Xion weren't ready to face their fate.

As soon as she was outside, she pointed the Star Shard to the sky with Destiny Islands in mind. It shined brightly, taking the keyblade wielder in a flash.

* * *

Riku stood on the miniature island, staring out at the ocean.

Fifteen minutes passed since he informed Merlin to pass the message to Hikari. He knew it was going to be hard for Hikari to accept, but it would be wrong of him not to tell her. Destiny Islands has been the meeting place for him and Xion to meet for a few times now. And today, was the day for Xion to decide.

"Riku."

Said silver-haired teen turned around to see his friend walking towards him. "Took you long enough." He joked, a smirk on his lips.

Hikari rolled her eyes. "You're just too early." She retorted, crossing her hands behind her head. She dropped her hands to her sides when Riku didn't retort back. "So… why did you call me here for?" she asked—straightly to the point.

Riku sighed. "You… won't like it."

"What?"

The older teen turned around to face the brunette. "I figured, you would like to see her first before she leaves…"

"What are you going on about?" Hikari gave him a confused look.

"Riku… Hikari…" a third party member arrived, making the other two turn. A black-haired girl was seen standing behind them. She gave a small smile to the brunette who was too shocked for words before turning to face the silver-haired teen.

"Have you found your answer?" Riku asked.

Xion nodded. "Yes, I certainly did." She looked down, placing a hand over to where her heart should be. She had fought her way through Xigbar and escaped the Organization. It was a big decision for her to take. The Organization would hunt her down, but she took it anyway. "I'm on the verge of losing everything I care about… so please… tell me where I should I go now." She raised her chin up, a worried expression across her face.

Hikari took a step forward. "Xion—"

"We'll go to Twilight Town."

The brunette turned her head sharply at Riku's direction. "Wait, Riku—Xion's not—" she tried to stop Riku from forcing her friend to go to DiZ. She wasn't that far to find an answer to solve their problems. She just needed more time.

"I'm ready." Xion cuts Hikari off, giving her a nod. She turned to look back at Riku.

"What? No—" Hikari tried to denied, but she stopped when Xion placed her hand on her shoulder.

Riku raised his hand and summoned a Dark Corridor. The three of them stepped inside the portal—with Xion dragging Hikari inside. The whole time they walked—they didn't speak to each other. The only noise that was heard were their footsteps echoing inside the corridors.

As soon as Riku's portal took them to Twilight Town, they walked in silence with Riku leading the way to the Old Mansion. The silver-haired teen stopped just before they reached the Old Mansion.

"Go inside. There's a girl named Namine. She'll fill you in on everything." The blindfolded teen instructed.

Xion nodded her head. "Thank you… and goodbye, Riku…" she gave him a small smile before turning to face the Old Mansion's gates.

Riku gave a nod before he turned around, looking at Hikari. The whole time, Hikari was quiet. She looked like she has something to say, but she kept quiet all the time. He knew how hard it is for Hikari to see Xion go, but she would be even sadder if she didn't see Xion for one last time. He walked closer to her and placed his hand on her shoulder—giving a comforting squeeze before walking deeper into the forest.

"Xion…"

The brunette stared at her friend with a disbelief and hurt look. She didn't understand why Xion chose this path. She knew Xion's wish is to be with Roxas and Axel for a longer time. So why did she choose to go back to early? For a few seconds, she tried to calm herself down before asking.

"Why…?" it was the only thing she could say.

Xion smiled sadly. "I have to go back, Hikari." she looked down to her hand and placed one on the side of her head. "These memories—they aren't really mine."

Hikari took a step forward, her eyebrows knitted in worry. "But if you go back—you'll disappear! No one… will remember you." She grabbed Xion's hand, trying to convince her to stop her decision. She inhaled a sharp breath, squeezing Xion's hand to make her look at her eyes. "I'm working on a way for you all to be your own person. I'm sure I'll find a way! I just need the password to Ansem's computer. If you just give me more time—!"

The Nobody shook her head with a small smile. "But there isn't any time left." She said, placing her hand over Hikari's. "Roxas is growing weaker and weaker if I don't give back these memories to Sora. I've been absorbing his powers—that's why he's been tired all the time." she explained.

Hikari didn't like it if she has to choose between Xion and Roxas.

"And if I don't go back to Sora, then he will never wake up."

The young keyblade wielder was at loss of words. She could feel something crushing her heart, a dead weight upon it. Her vision blurred when tears filled her eyes. Tears poured out from the corner of her eyes—running down her cheeks as she stared at her friend.

"Don't cry, Hikari. This is my decision." Xion wiped Hikari's tears away. "Please understand."

Hikari looked down.

Xion pulled Hikari into a hug. She wrapped her arms around the brunette tightly for one last time. Hikari could only return her hug weakly.

"There's something I need to ask of you…" Xion whispered, resting her chin on the girl's shoulder.

"Please… Hikari… Please take care of Roxas when I'm gone."

The brunette's grip around the Nobody tightened.

"He isn't ready to meet Sora just yet."

Xion slowly pulled away. "I'm glad Roxas introduced me to you." She smiled.

"Thank you, Hikari… for everything."

Hikari could only stare at Xion's back as she walked towards the mansion's gates.

 _It was Xion's last words._

"See you later… Xion."

 _She wasn't ready to say goodbye._

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas walked across the empty hallways—his footsteps echoing in the halls.

For months and months of thinking to leave the Organization, he had finally made up his mind. His eyebrows were knitted together as there was a frown across his lips. He didn't know why it took him so long to make the decision. Hikari has been offering it for quite awhile and he has been declining. He should've accepted her invitation from the start.

"Leaving without permission is prohibited."

The blond turned his head to look at the blue-haired man leaning against the wall.

"Can't you even remember such a simple rule?"

Roxas glared at him. "I don't care. I'm getting out."

Saix pushed himself off the wall, taking a few steps closer to stop Roxas from advancing forward. "Now that the puppet has become unusable to us, we need _you_."

"Xion isn't a puppet." Roxas clicked his tongue in annoyance. He was getting sick of everyone calling his friend a puppet.

"Again with the nonsense." Saix stared down at the shorter boy. "Use those ears of yours properly, or didn't you hear the explanation earlier? Turn back now." He said warningly.

Roxas stood straight, staying where he was standing.

"There's no way you can escape us… whether it's you or the puppet."

He had finally reached his limit.

"GET OUTTA MY WAY!"

In a blink of an eye, the keyblade was in Roxas' hand. He charged at Saix, swinging his keyblade at the man's head. Just before the keyblade hits his head—he caught it with his hand, wrapping his fingers around the shaft to push it away from him. The blue-haired man held the keyblade in one hand while the other held his own weapon.

Roxas' eyes widened as he knew he had no time to dodge Saix's attack. The attack sent him back flying a few feet away. He landed on the floor, knocking the air out of his lungs. He skidded to a stop as his keyblade landed a few feet away from him. He pushed himself up, propping himself up with his elbows as he glared at the man.

"Don't underestimate me." Saix straightened his posture, looking down on Roxas. "You've had your strength sapped by the puppet. Did you really think you could stand a chance against me?"

"Ughhh—What… did you say?" Roxas didn't understand what Saix was saying.

Saix stared down at the boy. "The cause of your pitifully weak state is due to Xion slowly draining you of your power." He began as he walked towards the fallen Nobody. He took his time in reaching Roxas—almost as if to taunt him. "Given time, it would eventually absorb you and be complete, but failed to do so due to unforeseen interferences."

"Xion—!"

The blue-haired man stopped right in front of the blond. "That is to say, Axel. he interfered because of your annoying games of false friendship." He bends down and roughly picked Roxas up by his coat, lifting him off the floor with force. "Friendship is something none of us will ever be able to feel!"

Roxas held Saix's wrist, trying to make him loosen his hold.

"Because we're all Nobodies! We have no hearts! What we fell are all fake, they're born from memories of our past! This rage of mine you see is also just an act! Even that fool, Axel, feels nothing too!"

Roxas gritted his teeth when Hikari's words come to mind.

" _That's not true. You have to have a heart to express those feeling."_

"You've all made fools of yourselves!"

"Ack!" Roxas gasped when Saix threw him off to a wall. He slid down and groaned in pain when he felt his back stinging in pain.

"You want to leave the Organization? Tell me, what will you do after that?" Saix stared down at the blond boy. "Apart from the Organization, there is no other place that will tolerate you."

" _If you guys want, we can all live together. You know…leave the Organization."_

"Think carefully. Who was it who gave you your name and place? Who gave you a reason for existence?" Saix dragged his Claymore against the floor, creating a spark. "You were closer to nothing without memories or a heart. We—the Organization provided everything for you."

" _You can stay with us! With the committee—we're always looking for people to help. They're like a second family to me."_

"You're wrong…" Roxas shakily stood up as he picked up his keyblade. He leaned against the wall for support. "So, what if I don't have memories or a heart? These are _my_ feelings, and I _will_ accept them!"

The blue-haired man snorted. "How long will you continue to allow yourself be blinded by your memories? We can feel nothing. That alone is the absolute truth."

"Nobody else decide what I feel! My feelings are my own!" Roxas ran towards Saix, their weapons clashing against each other.

"Ignorant fool! That puppet has already left your side, so why do you persist?!"

Roxas tightened his grip on the handle, pushing more strength into his keyblade. "Because we made a promise!"

A bright light glowed around his keyblade—changing the shape of the Kingdom Key.

The keyblade wielder pushed his keyblade down, breaking Saix's Claymore in one slash. He took one swing at Saix, slashing him across his shoulder. He jumped back to a safe distance—panting at the success of his counter attack. He raised his new keyblade up, examining the design.

"It… transformed…" Roxas murmured to himself.

"You'll regret this!" Saix said through gritted teeth—making Roxas look back at him. "All you can do is follow that puppet and wind up unwanted in oblivion!"

Roxas straightened his posture and walked pass by the injured Nobody.

"That's fine. At least your plans will be ruined."

The blond left the castle, walking towards the dark city bellow it. Perhaps, this is why Xion left the Organization. The Organization wasn't home to the both of them. It felt more like a prison.

From the corner of his eyes, he could see a familiar redhead, leaning against a wall—waiting for him.

"Your mind's made up?"

Roxas sighed. "Why… did the keyblade choose me? I have to know."

"Roxas—"

"I have the right to know the truth! I hardly know who I am! What is so wrong with wanting some answers!" Roxas finally turned to look at his friend, glaring at him.

"Finding out the truth doesn't always work out for the best—"

Roxas clicked his tongue as he turned around. "Somebody knows where I came from. If I can't get answers here, I'll get them somewhere else. That'll be the person… I trust." His mind immediately wondered to Hikari. She had been pretty honest with him the whole time.

She's the only person he trusts now.

"You can't turn your back against the Organization! You get on their bad side and they'll destroy you!" Axel took a step forward, trying to convince Roxas to stop.

"I already did." Roxas replied, referring to his fight with Saix. It would just bring more hate and conflict if he returns to the Organization. He summoned a dark corridor—with one world in mind. Hollow Bastion. He stepped inside the portal, not even looking back.

"No one will miss me."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari sat in the Fountain Area alone.

She couldn't get over the events that happened. Finding the truth about her three friends and then saying goodbye to Xion. She was always good with handling stress, but this was just too much. She had been staring at her ground for quite a while, trying to clear her mind. It wasn't working.

The brunette raised her chin up when she heard footsteps. "Roxas?" she stood up when she recognized the person coming out from the dark portal. The blond looked so sad and depressed when he pulled down his hood. He avoided Hikari's eyes as he walked closer to her—stopping a few steps away. "…you too, huh?" she sighed deeply, gazing down to look at her shoes.

"What do you mean?" Roxas asked, finally taking a good look at Hikari's face. He was surprised to see that her expression matched his own. Tired and depressed.

"About Xion… you found out about her too, right?" Hikari frowned. The surprised look across Roxas' was enough as an answer. "I just found out about her a few days ago… I—didn't take the news quite well…" she rubbed the back of her neck, forcing a small laugh to make the situation lighter.

"Same…" Roxas said in agreement. His eyes widened when Hikari suddenly hugged him out of nowhere. He blinked but returned the hug. It felt familiar. "What was that about?" he asked, laughing a little.

Hikari smiled. "You looked like you need a hug…"

"Thanks, I think I needed that." Roxas scratched the back of his head. "I quit the Organization… but I didn't have a clue where I could go… Is the offer still open?" he smiled a little.

Hikari grinned. "Of course."

Roxas smiled in return.

The brunette guided Roxas out of the Fountain Area to Merlin's house.

"How did you find out about Xion anyway?" Roxas asked.

Hikari stopped on her tracks, looking down in guilt. "Roxas… I haven't been truly honest with you… but I'm ready to tell you the truth now." She took out her scrapbook diary and summoned her keyblade, tapping on the lock once before summoning her keyblade away. She opened the book and took a piece of paper out, giving it to Roxas. "…I went to Castle Oblivion to find out more about Xion, but all I found was that."

It was a part of Vexen's report of No. i.

The rest of the report seemed to be missing.

"I didn't get much info on that… but before that—I was told by a friend. She told me everything about Xion." Hikari flipped the pages of her book, showing Roxas her notes about how to make a heart and memories. "I've… been working as one of the fake Organization members to help protect Namine and my brother from Organization XIII." She said, looking at Roxas straight in his eyes.

Hikari wasn't sure if she should tell him who he really is.

"I… didn't tell you anything about it because the I wasn't allowed to." Hikari sighed when Roxas didn't say anything. She doesn't want Roxas to be mad at her, but Roxas had the right to know the truth. "Before I met you, I went to Castle Oblivion and fought Organization XIII's members—Marluxia, Larxene, Vexen and Axel."

"…that's why you know about us." Roxas mumbled, staring at the report in his hand.

The brunette nodded her head.

"Thanks, Hikari… For telling me the truth." The blond smiled. He was relieved that someone was completely honest with him. He didn't care if Hikari hid it from him—all that matters now is that Hikari was honest.

"Roxas—!"

"Ugh!" Roxas suddenly fell to his knees, clutching his head in pain.

"Roxas!" Hikari kneeled down beside him, her hand on his back as she tried to support him. "Curaga—"

"No…" Roxas stopped Hikari from healing him. "Please, Hikari… tell me the truth about who I am—I keep on seeing you in my memories. I need to know the truth _now_." He lifted his gaze to meet with Hikari.

The brunette looked down before sighing. "Roxas, I don't actually know if I can really explain it to you—but there's someone who can." She said with a serious look.

"Who?"

"The girl that I'm protecting—Namine. She can tell you everything you want to know way better than me." Hikari smiled. She didn't want Roxas to go meet Namine alone—or else DiZ would find out. Hikari's eyes widened when something zoomed pass by between them. The two quickly glanced over to the direction when the arrow came from. Standing a few feet away from them was an Organization member, his gun pointed at them. "We were in the middle of something here, pal!" she glared at the man.

"Whoops! Sorry there! My hands slipped!" The man said sarcastically, placing a hand on his chest.

"Xigbar!" Roxas shouted when he recognized the weapon.

The man named Xigbar laughed. "Came to take you back, Rox! Be glad that it's me and not Saix." he grinned from ear to ear, resting his gun on his shoulder.

Hikari summoned her keyblade as she stood in front of the blond. "Roxas made his decision to leave the Organization! So leave him alone already!" she shouted angrily, her grip on the handle tightening.

Xigbar turned his head to look at the brunette. "Oh? It's _you_." He took a few steps closer and the keyblade wielder stiffened, positioning herself to fight and protect Roxas. "Let's see what you got kiddo!" he separated his gun into two, holding each one in one hand.

In a second flash, Xigbar fired his bullet-arrows at the two keyblade wielders. Hikari quickly provided cover for Roxas to recover. The hid behind the trees as the bullet continues to rain.

"Let me handle this—" Roxas summoned his keyblade.

Hikari stopped him. "Roxas—that guy is after you for real. I'll deal with him." she said, glancing over their hiding spot to lock eyes with the man's single gold-yellow eye. "You wanted to find answers, right? Go to Twilight Town and I'll meet you there." She smiled at him.

"I'm not leaving without you. We can take him on together—"

"Roxas, you're hurt. You can't fight him." Hikari reminded. She didn't know what he went through when he escaped the Organization, but she could guess that it wasn't pretty. "Do you trust me?"

The blond nodded his head. "Of course—"

"Then trust me that I'll win this fight and come back to you." Hikari gave him a reassuring smiled. She took out her good luck charm from her friends, holding it up for Roxas to see. Her other hand took Roxas' left hand, holding it in her own. "This is my good luck charm. I'll lend it to you, okay?" she tied the good luck charm around his wrist, turning it to a bracelet. "It'll be proof that I'll come back to find you no matter what."

Roxas stared at his wrist. "Hikari…"

The bullet shot the tree, almost breaking it in half.

"I'll distract him while you go!"

Hikari came out of her hiding spot and deflected a few bullets away while dodging the rest.

She blocked another round of bullets with her barrier, waiting for the right time to strike. The man seemed to have control over gravity as he kept reappearing in the air, upside down. The brunette casted the barrier off when the last bullet was deflected. As soon as the barrier was off—she was met with the nuzzle of his gun.

"Too late, little missy~" Xigbar said in a sing song voice.

The keyblade wielder quickly raised her keyblade, averting the gun's original target. She pushed the nuzzle to the sky when it fired off. She held her position, trying to push the man away from her.

"You're forgetting that I have another one!" Xigbar laughed as he held the other gun. "Say goodbye—!" he seemed to be in shock when Roxas came over, swinging his keyblade at him.

"You're forgetting that I'm here too!" Roxas waved his keyblade at Xigbar's head—with him barely dodging the attack.

"Roxas!" Hikari shouted in surprise at the sight of the blond.

"I'm not leaving you alone."

The hood fell loose as Xigbar's face was completely revealed.

"You're—!" Hikari stared in shock as she recognized the Xigbar's face. She has seen him twice. One time when she visited Radiant Garden and the second time was when Cid showed her a picture of Ansem the Wise's apprentices. "You're Ansem the Wise's apprentice!" she pointed her finger at him.

Xigbar gave a mock bow. "That's me alright! Pleasure to meet you." He grinned. He raised his gun and pointed it at the keyblade wielders' direction. Without a single warning, he fired at them. "Hahaha! I can't have you go on telling Roxas the truth, girlie! We still need the little brat!" he kept on firing at them.

"Hikari—!" Roxas shouted, concern for his friend's safety. He felt a sharp pain to his side as he hasn't fully recovered from his fight with Saix. He fell to his knees, clutching his side. "Ugh—!" he winced in pain, trying to get back up to his feet.

"A-ha! Lucky me!" Xigbar quickly changed his target to Roxas. He teleported near the blond, reaching his hand out to grab him. Before his hand could even lay on Roxas, a keyblade was thrown between them—a faint purple glow around it. In a blink of an eye, Hikari appeared between them, her eyes flashing in anger—surprising Xigbar with her sudden appearance. "What—?!"

Hikari grabbed her keyblade and thrust her keyblade forward, not hesitating to attack the Organization member.

Xigbar tilted his head to the side, barely missing the keyblade. He jumped back to a safe distance, staring at the brunette with an amused smirk. "Good, good! Looks like you're not as weak as I thought." He grinned.

The brunette glared at him before turning to Roxas, casting cure on him. "You okay?"

"Y—Yeah…" Roxas flinched as he tried to stood up.

Hikari helped him up, making him lean on her for support. She summoned away her keyblade to take something out from her pouch. "I'll catch up with you soon, Rox." She smiled as she handed him the Star Shard.

"Hikari—wait!" before the Star Shard could take the both of them to Twilight Town, Hikari ran towards Xigbar—summoning her keyblade again to fight him.

The Star Shard glowed brightly—taking only Roxas with it to the sky.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Roxas raised his wrist up to the sun, staring at the bracelet Hikari gave him.

After Hikari sent him to Twilight Town, the first place he could think of was the Clocktower. He was tempted to go back and help Hikari out, but he trusted her and he will wait for her until she comes back. What Hikari told him was true, he was injured and he was growing weaker—if he did go back, he would just burden Hikari.

The Nobody sighed deeply as he buried his face into his knees.

He turned his head when he felt someone sat next to him. "Xion!" he exclaimed in surprise. He was glad that he could see his friend again. "Oh… thank you." He smiled when Xion offered him some sea salt ice cream.

The two of them sat in silence, watching the sunset.

"You know, I'm actually waiting for Hikari." Roxas admitted, smiling as he showed the girl sitting next to him the bracelet around his wrist. "She said to wait for her here—"

"Roxas… I'm out of time." Xion suddenly said, cutting Roxas off. She stood up and pulled her hood down. "Even if I'm not ready… I have to make this choice. You have poured so many memories into me, given me so much that I feel like I'm about to overflow…"

Roxas stared at the black-haired girl confusedly.

"Look at me, Roxas. Who do you see? If you see somebody else's face… a boy's face… then that means I'm almost ready. This puppet will have to play her part."

The blond's eyes widened when he saw a brunette—the brunette who was so similar to Hikari.

"Roxas… this is him… this is Sora."

Roxas stared at her. "So…ra…"

Xion suddenly took a step forward, walking on air. She stood there, her back facing him as she pulled her hood back up. The black-haired girl turned to face her friend—raising her hand as a dark energy began to appear around her. In a burst of energy, her form transformed to an armor.

"You're next… I have to make you a part of me too. Don't you see? This is why I was created!" a sword appeared in her grasp, pointing it at Roxas. "This is my true form! That is why I must take you back and be complete that is my purpose as a puppet."

Roxas stood on the edge. "Being a puppet… doesn't matter to me anyway." He said confidently. He gave her a smile, reaching his hand out for her to take. "Xion is still Xion. She will always be our best friend!" he placed his other hand on his chest.

If Xion could, she would've stopped right there, but she knew she had to do it. She wasn't going to follow Xemnas' plans.

Xion pressed her sword against Roxas' shoulder, making him flinch. "Don't make me laugh! I'm done playing this friendship act!" she shouted as she threw Roxas off to the invincible floor where she was standing. She stood before him. "Don't hold back!"

Roxas looked down, gritting his teeth. He wished that he had gone back and stay with Hikari rather than fight Xion and finding another truth about her. If he had a heart, he would've been so heartbroken beyond repair. He shakily stood up as he summoned his keyblade.

The Nobody ran towards Xion, drawing his keyblade as far as he can. He jumped as he avoided Xion's attacks.

Holding back the tears, he slashed his keyblade downward against her.

It was over.

"Xion!" Roxas shouted in worry. He thought that Xion would've at least defend herself against his attacks. He noticed that her purpose wasn't to hurt him at all. He reached his arms out to catch her from falling, but a sudden sharp pain in his head made him stop. "ARGH!" he screamed out in pain as the floor beneath him began to shatter.

 _'Good bye… Roxas…'_

* * *

"Uh…" Roxas slowly opened his eyes. He glanced around, finding that he was in Twilight Town. "What… am I doing here?" he rubbed the back of his head, pushing himself to a sitting position.

He couldn't remember much about what happened earlier. He remembered that Hikari had given him her bracelet, but after that—everything was a blur to him.

"You'll be… better off without me… Roxas…"

The blond turned his head up when he saw a black-haired girl limping towards him. She fell to her knees and before she could even hit the ground, Roxas caught her and held her in his arms.

"Am I… the one who did this to you?" Roxas questioned as she stared at the girl's disappeared body.

The girl shook her head. "No… it was my choice to go away…" she said weakly as a part of her body began to turn into an ice crystal. "I belong with Sora… and now, I'm going back… to be with him." she smiled, staring into the sky.

Roxas could only stare at the girl.

"Roxas… I need you to do me a favor." The girl reached her hand to touch Roxas's hand. "All those hearts that I've captures… Kingdom Hearts… Set them free."

"Kingdom Hearts?" Roxas parroted.

The girl nodded. "It's too late for me to undo my mistakes, but you can't let Xemnas have Kingdom Hearts."

Roxas glanced over to the girl's leg as the ice began to spread.

"Goodbye Roxas… I'm glad I got to meet you, Axel… and Hikari too." the girl raised her hand weakly, cupping Roxas' face. "You're all my best friends…Never forget that's the truth."

Roxas' eyes widened. "No!" he caught the girl's hand, tightening his hold around her small hand. "Xion! We'll have ice cream again—the three of us!"

A smile was seen on the girl's lips before she disappeared—her body turning into thousands and thousands of pieces of crystals floating freely to the sky.

"Xion…"

Tears slid down Roxas' cheeks, dripping down to the single pink seashell on the ground.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"How much longer can you keep up, girlie?"

Hikari had to admit. She was exhausted from fighting this man. Her arms were beginning to cramp from how much she moved to block his bullets. She wondered when will the other committee members come and help her out.

"Tell you what? I'll let you off if you tell me where you sent those two brats to." Xigbar rested his gun on his shoulder, smirking at the tired brunette.

The keyblade wielder snorted. "You must be—stupid if you think I'll tell you." She huffed out as she wiped the sweat off her chin.

"Just why are you trying so hard to protect them? They're you're brother's Nobodies!" Xigbar sighed out.

"I made a promise to them!" Hikari shouted as she ran towards the man. She swung her keyblade at him sloppily—completely exhausted from the fight. The man merely sidestepped away from her attack. He raised his foot and kicked Hikari back, making her land a few feet away. "I promised—I'll find a way to save them all!" she grunted as she pushed herself up.

"Well, you're not doing a very good job at it." Xigbar laughed. "It's too bad you gave your Star Shard to Roxas." He grinned when Hikari stared at him confusedly. "Now you don't have any chance to stop them from fighting each other."

"What—"

"Heh! No matter where you sent Roxas, Xion will find him and absorb every last drop of his powers! Now, I'm just here to keep you busy. You know, you've proven quite a trouble for us."

Hikari panicked. "Roxas… Xion…"

If Xigbar was right, she couldn't travel to Twilight Town to stop Roxas and Xion from fighting each other. Her only option was to go to Merlin and asked him if he could teleport her to Twilight Town, but it was difficult with the cowboy shooting at her every second.

The brunette straightened her posture, taking a deep breath.

"Get out of my way." Hikari warned him in a threatening tone.

"Finally getting serious? Good!"

The keyblade wielder charged, running towards the man.

Her friends need her more than ever—and she wasn't going to let this man get in her way.

It was a promise.

The Starseeker glowed brightly when she swung it at Xigbar. In a burst of light, the Starskeeker changed form into another keyblade. It was white and blue in color—and almost looked like a sword. She payed no mind to the change and continued her attack against the man. The Nobody raised his Arrowgun to block her keyblade, but she knocked the gun off of the man's hand. She spun around swinging her keyblade a little lower to attack the man's abdomen.

Hikari jumped up and thrust her keyblade down. Xigbar jumped back to avoid her deadly attack, making her stab the ground instead. She leaned against her keyblade as she stood up—taking the keyblade into hand.

"Hikari!" Mickey arrived in the area, his keyblade drawn out as he stood beside the brunette's side. "Sorry I'm late!"

"Mickey!" Hikari exclaimed in surprise at the sight of the mouse king. The two of them nodded at each other before turning their attention to the Organization member.

Xigbar held his stomach. "Heh! Looks like I've underestimated you…" he smirked. "As a reward, I'll let you in a little secret to spice things up." He grinned from ear to ear.

The brunette narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"You see, Axel has the worst luck out of all of us—he's cursed for a thousand year for breaking all those mirrors and promises."

The keyblade wielder's eyes were as wide as plates when she connected the dots.

Xigbar smirked as he summoned a dark corridor. "Ciao."

"Wait—!" Mickey ran after the Organization member but stopped midway when the dark portal disappeared along with the Nobody. He frowned deeply before summoning his keyblade away. He turned to face Hikari who was still in shock. "Hikari are you alright?" he asked in worry.

The brunette shook her head, shaking the thoughts away. "Mickey! We have to go to Twilight Town!"

She has to save Roxas and Xion first.

Mickey nodded his head anyway despite his confusion.

"Don't bother." A voice stopped them. The two of them turn their head towards the direction where they heard the voice. A fiery redhead was seen walking out of a dark portal. A grim look was across his face, his gaze fixed on Hikari as she stared at him in disbelief.

"You!" Mickey raised his hand, summoning his keyblade back into hand. "Hikari, stand back! Let me handle this—"

"That time… why did you destroy all those mirrors?" Hikari asked, holding down her anger as she held her keyblade tightly. "Roxas and Xion had the chance to know who they really are."

"Hikari?" Mickey glanced confusedly over to the brunette,

Axel sighed, "You know the answer. The Organization will eliminate them."

"Like what they're doing now?" Hikari retorted. "If they had find out sooner then none of this would've happened!" she shouted at him. "They had the right to know who they really are!"

Axel looked away. "It's too late anyway. Roxas already fought—"

The brunette was already in front of the redhead. "Too late? TOO LATE?!" she had dropped her keyblade along the way. She gripped on the man's coat, shaking him back and forth as she demanded him for an answer. "If you knew that they were going to fight then why didn't you stop them?!" she shouted at him.

"Aren't you their best friend?! You were there weren't you? Why did you let them fight?!" Hikari kept on shouting at the man's face as tears began to stream down her face. "ANSWER ME, AXEL!" she demanded, taking a few deep breaths.

Axel stared down at the girl's eyes. "Only one of them can survive." He held the girl's wrist, pulling her hands away from his coat. He pushed her away a little to give them both space. "You wouldn't understand, Lil' Red."

Hikari took a few steps back, laughing a little. "I wouldn't understand?" she asked him. "I had to choose between saving _them_ and my own _brother_! Does that seem easy to you?!" she broke down crying, hunching over the ground as she poured all of the feelings she had been hiding.

Mickey came running towards her, standing beside her as he placed his hand on her back.

The brunette panted heavily. "Roxas… and—and that girl they're like a family to me too. I don't want to choose—I wanted to save them all! But now… it's too late…" she curled her hands into a tight fist as she glanced up to glare at the redhead. "It's getting harder and harder just to remember her—I can't—I can't even remember her name anymore!"

"You're the one who wouldn't understand! You're just a Nobody!" she shouted at him in anger.

Axel's eyes widened.

"You're right…" he answered. He turned around on his heels and summoned a dark corridor. He glanced over his shoulder, flashing the brunette a bitter smile. "We have a lot more in common than I've thought."

Hikari stared at the spot where Axel had disappeared before closing her eyes.

 _I couldn't keep our promise._

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was later that day, after Mickey had calmed Hikari down, they traveled to Twilight Town to meet up with Riku and DiZ.

The king was right beside her when she poured all of her feelings out. She had bottled them up to the point where she had reached her breaking point. She was glad that Mickey was willing to listen to her cries and complains. She told Mickey everything about her friendship with Roxas and the black-haired girl that she was slowly forgetting—though the part of Ventus, Terra and Aqua will remain a secret.

Mickey couldn't come up with a solution, but Hikari didn't mind.

"Are you sure, Hikari?" Mickey asked before they stepped inside the computer room.

The brunette gave a weak nod. "Yeah…"

The two of them entered the room, finding both DiZ and Riku at the corner. The two of them walked deeper inside the room, standing behind the DiZ and Riku.

"Roxas!" Hikari's eyes widened when she saw Roxas on the floor, completely knocked out. She kneeled down before him, reaching her hand out. She patted his cheeks lightly to wake him up.

"He's asleep." Riku said, making the brunette sigh in relief. He kneeled down beside the brunette and handed her something. "This was what he has been holding onto. You made quite an impression on him." He placed the bracelet on Hikari's palm.

The brunette stared at the bracelet. "I… broke our promise… We didn't meet after…" she said sadly.

DiZ paid no attention to the brunette. "Namine hopes we can squeeze in a little more time before Sora's memories are completely restored. Until then, we'll transplant new memories into him and let him live in the simulated Twilight Town." He stared at the computer, typing a few things into the screen.

Hikari could only stay quiet. Her eyes caught something sticking out from Roxas' pocket. Gingerly, she took out the piece of photo paper and her eyes widened at the wrinkled and fading photo.

"Could you please make it that he's enjoying his summer vacation with his friends?" Hikari stood up, holding the piece of photo in her hand.

She showed DiZ a picture of Roxas, the black-haired girl and herself.

"This girl and Axel… Is there a chance he can spend his time with them?"

* * *

 _To have lost the only existence he ever had  
No matter what dream we give him, will it be ever be enough to compensate?_

* * *

"Ah..." Roxas rubbed his eyes as he woke up from his sleep. He yawned loudly as he covered his mouth. "Another dream about him... Sora..." he stared off into the corner of the room.

"Hey! Roxas!"

The blond turned his head to look at the window, spotting his three friends waiting for him in the streets.

"Ups, sorry guys! I'll be right down!" Roxas apologized as he opened the window before shutting it to get ready.

 _'Only seven more days to go until my summer vacation is over.'_

* * *

 _'I'll look after you, just as promised._

 _This will be my gift to you._

 _Happy birthday,_

 _Roxas.'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A/N: as you guys can see, I'm following the DAYS manga timeline. I changed a few things a little bit so yeah haha. I didn't inxlude the fight between Riku and roxas because that would stretch the story longer...

We're at the end of Forget Me Not! The next update will be the new story for Hikari's journey in KH2! I'm not sure about the tittle yet though…

So what do you guys think of Forget Me Not? Leave your thoughts in the review! I would love to hear what you guys think

thank you so much for sticking with me and this story guys :D

Here are some of Stitch's translation:

Achi-baba= friend

Choota= crud

Hagata= here

Ih= yes

Ikata= exclamation of discovery

Kanja ooga = no cousins

Maka maka= hurry

Naga =no/don't want to

Takka =thanks


End file.
